Sensei Of The Year
by Soxman
Summary: After the Mizuki incident, Iruka looks back on his time in the Academy with Naruto, and feels like his work in that area has been left incomplete. Someday in the future to be a longer story. Not yaoi.
1. Chapter 1

AN: This is going to be my last new fic for the time being unless an idea pops into my brain that must be written about. It involves yet another canon character who I think should have and would have taught Naruto much more than they did. Basically, the premise is: Iruka wasn't as injured in his fight with Mizuki in the canon, which left him more time and energy to finish something he deemed important. So without further ado, here is my newest fic. I don't own Naruto, and I hope you all enjoy.

Prologue: Seven Days That Changed The Elemental Nations

Iruka sighed and turned over in his bed, still feeling restless from the day's events. By the twentieth turn, it no longer hurt nearly as much as it had when Mizuki's shurikens initially impaled him. Mizuki… Oh, Mizuki.

He had been his friend. His childhood friend. His lifelong supporter. It had always been Mizuki and Iruka; Iruka and Mizuki. What had happened? Was he always like that, and he just willingly blinded himself to it? Or did the pressure of the ninja's life get to him? Where had his Will of Fire been extinguished that he would trick a young student into doing a potentially deadly robbery for him, and then try and kill that student and one of his lifelong friends?

Was it something he'd done that had made Mizuki turn away? Could he have done something that had extinguished his Will of Fire? Maybe he'd…- no. No, he wasn't going down that road. Mizuki had made his choice. He'd strayed from the Will of Fire. That much was clear now. Whatever he might have done, it did not excuse all that Mizuki did. After all, he hadn't given in to hatred, and yet Mizuki had tried to kill Naruto once he saw the opportunity.

Naruto. He was finally a Genin. He'd always known the kid had potential. He'd really proven his worth. He didn't even know how the kid had managed that many Shadow Clones; it was supposed to be a really rare and powerful Kinjutsu after all. Didn't the Hokage say something about the jutsu being used to make solid clones of oneself? Well, that must have taken a monstrous amount of chakra. At least Naruto had a monstrous amount of chakra, thanks to the tailed beast sealed within him.

He finally understood what the Hokage was saying about Naruto. Naruto was not the Kyuubi in any form; he was just a scared little kid trying to make his way in the ninja world. He'd known that for a long time, but tonight had really finely illustrated that point. Seeing Naruto like that, so scared and shocked, had really driven home the point. He'd seen firsthand how the village had failed him by assuming that he was the Kyuubi. And it saddened him to know that so many, like Mizuki, had strayed from the Will of Fire.

But at least Naruto was a Genin and he could begin righting those wrongs himself. Except… it was a nagging feeling, almost at the back of his mind. Naruto had passed by the skin of his teeth. Actually, he hadn't passed- Mizuki had inadvertently revealed what he was capable of. But what did that really matter? He was a Genin now, and it was a job for his sensei to work with him. And so what if he couldn't do a Bunshin? He could do Kage Bunshin!

_"Kid, I don't know if you've heard, but we're ninja, not Academy students. That Bunshin crap won't cut it here," His own Sensei had once told him when he'd tried to create Bunshin. "If you're going to use clones in battle, then you'd best find a better technique."_

It was just like sensei had said; find a better technique. And Naruto had found one with his Kage Bunshin. Solid clones were way better than the pitiful illusions Academy students were taught, right? So much more useful than the Earth clones he'd learned how to create nearly a decade ago. So nothing to worry about. Except…

Except. A doubt was stuck there, like a parasite, at the back of his mind. Gnawing, eating away at those positive feelings. Was Naruto really ready to be a ninja? Well, that was a moot point, wasn't it? Because he was already a ninja even if he second-guessed him now. It wasn't like he could take that away from Naruto. By himself anyway, his sensei might- no. Probably not. Well, maybe. No. Nothing to worry about. Still…

_"I taught in the Academy for five years kid," His sensei had once remarked as he took a puff from his cigarette. "And from it, I learned one thing above all. If you're going to do a job, do it right, or save someone else the trouble of cleaning up your shit and just wash your hands of it," He remarked, walking away at his own attempt at a half-assed detection technique._

He was just leaving things undone, wasn't he? He was supposed to be Naruto's sensei, and yet he'd passed a ninja with abysmal Taijutsu skills, next to no general or historical knowledge, downright awful chakra control, awful use of hand seals, and shoddy accuracy skills._ If you're going to do a job, do it right, or save someone else the trouble and wash your hands of it."_ Indeed.

_"But the best thing about teaching at the Academy was, once in a while, once in a blue moon, a student comes along who can surpass all your hopes and expectations, who you see more potential for than anyone else you've ever taught," His sensei had explained right before he had retired from the ninja force. "And you were that student for me, kid."_

Abysmal Taijutsu, sucky control, awful accuracy, awful hand seals, next to no knowledge. And he was now a Genin. He could only imagine his sensei's horrified reaction. "_Kid, did you really just pass a student like that? Does this mean that you're going to hand in your license and retire like me? No? Well maybe you should think about hanging it up if that's the best you can do." _Yeah, no. He could do better. Way better. He was sure of that.

_"Time, kid, time. Clock's always tickin'. And so is my patience. And that's a bad thing," That gem had come from the man during his Genin test. He still remembered his team's befuddled look when'd they'd found out that the entire objective was to work with the other two students to achieve the objective. 'Why couldn't anyone have just told me that?'_

_'Why couldn't anyone have just told me that?'_ In a week, Naruto would be placed on a team. There was always a week layover to divvy up the Genin. To figure who fit best where, and with which sensei. He could only imagine how out of place his former student would feel, especially after how he'd done in the Academy. And what made it worse was that it didn't even need to happen. Maybe if he took a little more interest and worked with him a bit…_ "A student comes along who can surpass all your hopes and expectations."_

Right then. That was that. He had a week. One week. And by Kami, he was going to make sure that Naruto was that student. If he could learn an advanced Kinjutsu in one night, then he was capable of so much more. And he'd never really tried to, sadly. He'd never really been pushed or challenged. Granted, some of his colleagues had done their best to sabotage Naruto's efforts, but it was no excuse. It was within his power to rectify all of that. What excuse could he offer for not doing so?

"Tomorrow I'll pay him a visit," Iruka muttered as he turned in his bed again and his weary mind finally allowed him to drift off to sleep.

* * *

_Next Day_

"Naruto, can I talk to you for a minute?" Iruka asked, as the boy came out of his apartment. What luck that he caught him just before he headed out. Probably to play a prank on the unsuspecting village at large. Someday they were going to have to give him a medal for all the interference he ran on the villager's behalves. Anyway, he'd found him, now he just had to make him accept his proposition.

"Sure Iruka-sensei. What can I do for you?" He asked eagerly. Wow, and here he'd thought Iruka-sensei would be mad at him after everything that happened with Mizuki and the Forbidden Scroll. Good thing that turned out to be wrong. He was just planning on staying away from the guy for a while until he cooled off a bit.

Iruka bit his lip nervously. "Um… I really don't know how to say this, but… well." He sighed. "You're not really Genin material, Naruto," He finally admitted; ready to slap himself once he realized what words he'd used.

"What!?" Naruto asked, completely shocked. It would have been comedic how he looked like he'd just gotten through trying to date Sakura if the situation hadn't been so serious.

"No, no. You are a Genin, Naruto," He hastily corrected. He took a breath. "What I'm trying to say is, well… on the scale of ninja who passed the test, there's an average genin in the middle, there's Rookie of the Year at the top, and then there's you… at the other end," Iruka finished sadly. He saw Naruto's downcast look. Why did it feel like he was kicking a sweet little puppy just to see what would happen, all of a sudden? "What I'm trying to say is, I'm worried about your skills once you get out in the field. You barely got past the Academy, Naruto."

Naruto shrugged it off. "Don't worry about it, Iruka-sensei. I'll be fine." He gave the man his characteristic foxy grin. "After all, I'm gonna be Hokage!"

Iruka smiled. There was his in. "I have no doubt you'll be Hokage someday Naruto," He replied casually. Naruto's eyes lit up at his casual statement. Maybe no one else had ever acknowledged that his dream was possible? "All I'm saying is; how would you like some help on the way? Who wouldn't want to train a future Hokage after all?"

Naruto paused, clearly lost in thought. The offer was tempting; it really was. And Iruka-sensei seemed pretty cool despite the fact that he was really boring. "Will you teach me some cool jutsus!?" He asked excitedly.

Iruka shrugged. "Maybe. Depending on what we get through. I know a couple of cool jutsus any future Hokage would want." Could Naruto look any more excited? "But… there are also basic skills any other future Hokage would have. Like Taijutsu skills. And you ranked in the bottom half in class spars," Iruka pointed out. Naruto once again looked like his dearest hopes were dashed.

"But Mizuki said I was doing fine," Naruto muttered before he remembered exactly what his word was worth.

"That's the point," Iruka commented dryly. "Mizuki personally oversaw your Taijutsu and weapons accuracy training. And Mizuki turned out to be a traitor to the village yesterday. Do you see why I'm kind of worried about you? I just want to make sure you're the best ninja you can be," He explained kindly.

"Don't I only have a week before I'm assigned a team?" Naruto asked. "How much can you really teach me in that time? And how do I know it won't be as boring as class was?"

"Did you like sparring Naruto?" Iruka asked innocently, knowing he might soon have his revenge for all the times Naruto said he was boring. "Well that's how I'm going to teach you proper Tiajutsu. And proper accuracy. And how to flash through Hand Seals faster and neater, because to be honest you weren't great with those either. Nor was your chakra control much good. And of course there are certain basics every ninja has to know that I'm pretty sure you do not," Iruka explained. "I might only have a week for around-the-clock training, if that's what you want, but I'll always be happy to teach you. You're my student, Naruto."

Nobody had ever made him a similar offer. He had always been shunted to one side by Academy instructors who refused to teach him anything, who ignored his questions, who tried to pretend that he did not exist. Even if Iruka was a really boring sensei, he was a sensei who was willing to devote a week to make sure he could be that awesome ninja that would one day become Hokage. And he even promised to teach Naruto some cool jutsus! Sold. That was too good a deal to pass up. "All right sensei! If you're going to make me into a kickass ninja, then we'd better get started!"

Iruka smiled. 'That was almost too easy.' "Sure Naruto. Let's get over to the Academy," He said, as he walked away with Naruto eagerly following behind.

* * *

"All right Naruto. First, a little review," His student sighed sadly, feeling like he'd walked into a trap. "All right, what makes a Genin a Genin?"

Naruto shrugged. "Having the headband with no jacket?"

"Nope. That tells you who is a Genin and who isn't. Try again?" Iruka commanded sternly.

"Um, does it have something to do with skill sets?" Naruto asked curiously.

"Correct. That's one bowl of ramen I'll pay for tonight," Iruka commented idly. His student's eyes lit up. "Yup, for every question you get right; I'll pay for one bowl of ramen for you." Naruto's eyes glazed over at all the free ramen he could possibly get. "Naruto!" He snapped to attention. "Now then, what an Academy student needs to know to become a Genin are the Basic Three- Kawarimi, Bunshin, and Henge-, how to properly throw a kunai, the proper Academy forms, the hand seals and how to use them, basic chakra control, and essential Shinobi knowledge. Now then, you already have the basic three. Can you make one of your new clones?"

"Yeah, sure sensei!" Naruto replied eagerly as he created a Kage Bunshin. Iruka studied it intently, before walking around it to view it from all angles. It was a perfect copy of Naruto, no question.

"What exactly can your clone do, Naruto?" He asked curiously. "I can use Doton Kage Bunshin, which creates a clone from the mud around me. But all clone techniques have their quirks." Like those stupid lightning clones he'd once messed with. Damn electrical shock.

"Um," He stared at his clone. "That's a good question." Iruka had to resist the urge to facepalm. On the other hand, he'd only known the technique for less than twenty-four hours, so maybe he was being a little unfair. "You can use jutsus, right?" He asked the clone.

The clone proceeded to Kawarimi with a nearby chair. "Yeah, boss."

"And of course you can fight," Naruto muttered. "Though you pop if you get too many hits." He stared thoughtfully, putting together stray pieces in his mind of things his sensei had once told him. "You're made by splitting by chakra, right?" The clone nodded. Iruka was rather surprised by that observational leap. "So you don't need to eat or sleep, or anything like that right?" The clone nodded again. "So if I made you read stuff for me, could you read it and then summarize it for me?"

Iruka had to admit, that was pretty insightful thinking. This job might not be as hopeless as he first thought. The clone meanwhile, had gone over to one of the many Shinobi manuals he kept in the room, turned to a random page, and began reading through it. After watching it in wonder and curiosity for a few minutes, Iruka spoke again after it gave them a thumbs-up to his question. "All right, dispel it and we'll work with it later."

Naruto shrugged and popped the clone out of existence. A thought popped into his head suddenly. "Hey, Iruka-sensei, why has Kiri been in a state of civil war for years?" He asked curiously.

Iruka stared at him. "How did know that?" Was Naruto astutely aware of the world around him and he'd just never noticed? And what was with the timing of his question?

Naruto shrugged, not seeing what the big deal was. "I just… just… well, it said that that was why-" He trailed off, an idea coming to him. "It said that in the book! It was that chapter on the current state of the Elemental Nations, and it was talking about Kiri, and my clone popped, and now I know it!" Naruto rattled off breathlessly.

"So you… gain clones' memories?" Iruka asked dubiously. 'Was it really possible? Could it be so simple?'_ "A student comes along who can surpass all your hopes and expectations."_

"Yeah! I think I do!" Naruto exclaimed breathlessly. He quickly created another clone. "Pick a random page and read from that book!" He commanded excitedly. The clone shrugged and walked over to read. After it had read for another five minutes, Naruto dispelled it. "I know it all! It was talking about…" He trailed off confusedly. "Kumo tried to kidnap Hinata?" He asked dubiously.

"Yeah. They wanted the Byakugan, so they- wait a minute! You didn't know that before! It really does work!" Iruka announced excitedly. An idea suddenly came into his head on how to deal with one of his student's biggest gripes over the years. "Hey, weren't you always complaining about how the library wouldn't let you back in after that racket you caused one time!?" Naruto nodded, rather annoyed that his sensei had brought up that particular incident. "Can you Henge your clones?" Naruto nodded, not seeing where this was going, and created another Kage Bunshin, before Henging it into a double of Iruka. "Looks like your library card just got renewed, Naruto. And the best part is, you don't even have to do the reading!"

Naruto stared from the clone to Iruka, and back again, just processing what his sensei had said, before dispelling it and pumping his fist in the air. "YATTA!" Needless to say, Naruto dislike reading with a passion. A workaround for it… well, it was almost as good as all-you-can-eat ramen buffets. Almost.

"How many of those clones can you make?" Naruto shrugged, not having any real idea. "Well, if you could make just as many as you did last night, then this will work perfectly. Create some clones, and set them to work reading up on all my remedial material," Iruka commanded. Naruto shrugged and dozens of copies of him puffed into existence and grudgingly set to work reading up on all the stuff Naruto had for him. "All right then. Let's work on Tiajutsu now. We'll go outside and I'll just work on getting your form right."

* * *

"Again, Naruto!" Iruka commanded sternly. His student was a ball of limitless energy, but he just seemed unable to get the stances down right. "Your feet need to be further apart, and you need to hold your hands up higher and stand up straighter," He informed him.

"Why do I need to keep doing this!?" Naruto asked, completely frustrated by this point.

"Let me show you," Iruka said sweetly. Revenge. Oh. Sweet. Revenge. This was payback for all the times he'd disrupted his class; though he could safely call this training. He stepped onto the practice field opposite Naruto and set himself in the correct stance. "Spar with me." He saw Naruto hesitate. "Begin!"

Two minutes later, Naruto was lying in a crumpled heap on the ground, having lost twice in quick succession to his sensei. "That's why," His sensei told him. "With your stance as it is, it's very easy for me to charge you and put you on the defensive early on. You need to position yourself better to avoid an early knockout, and to better dodge an opponent's first attack," Iruka explained. "Now then, let's do it again, until you get it right."

* * *

_An Hour Later_

"Pretty good, Naruto," Iruka commented after an hour of work. "We'll work on this some more tomorrow,' He said. "Now then, I want to work on some chakra control."

"Chakra control?" Naruto asked curiously. What the hell was that?

"Remember the leaf exercise?" Naruto nodded. "That's for improving basic chakra control. Did you ever finish that one up?"

Naruto hung his head. "Not really, sensei. I got it working, but I couldn't really do it consistently."

"Well…- hang on. Naruto, make a clone." Confused, he did just what his sensei told him. "Have it try out the leaf exercise!" Finally catching on, Naruto set his clone to work. Sure enough, even though it couldn't get the leaf floating properly, when he dispelled it, his chakra felt a little less wild and untamed.

"I think it worked, sensei," Naruto commented.

'Boy, those clones really seem to be the answer to all that ails him.' "Set a dozen or so clones to work practicing the leaf exercise," Iruka told him. "We're going to work on some accuracy and Hand Seals, and then we're calling it a day."

"And then you teach me a new jutsu?" Naruto asked excitedly.

"Nope. Maybe tomorrow, if we get through a lot," Iruka explained. "You need better control and better use of Hand Seals before I teach it to you," He explained casually. "Now then, target practice. I'll show you how each weapon is supposed to be properly used." He quickly demonstrated how to fight with a kunai, and implant it and a shuriken on a desired target. "Now you try."

* * *

_An Hour Later_

"Better. That was six out of ten," Iruka commented. "You're high a while back was four out of ten. You're definitely getting there Naruto. But again, this will take some more hard work."

Naruto stared at him. He felt so much better about being a ninja after just one day of hard work with Iruka-sensei. "I'll do whatever it takes, sensei."

_"A student comes along who can surpass all your hopes and expectations."_ 'And it looks like you're him, Naruto.' "Last but not least, we have to work on Hand Seals. I hate to say it, but yours were always pretty sloppy, Naruto," Iruka commented. "Flash through them."

Naruto nodded determinedly and flashed through all the Academy Seals. Tiger, Ox. Rat, Serpent, Boar, Dragon, Dog, Bird, Hare, Ram, Horse, and Monkey. "All right, we'll work through them one at a time," His sensei announced. "Here's Ram. Make your seal look exactly like mine." Naruto shifted his hands slightly. "Tighten those hands together Naruto; we want a nice, solid Hand Seal."

By the time they'd finished working, they'd made it all the way from Ram to Boar, to Dragon, to Dog, to Serpent, to Bird. "We'll do the rest tomorrow, Naruto. And then we'll review. We're going to put in a full day tomorrow, so be ready at nine. Now how about that ramen?" Naruto excitedly began to head in the direction of Ichiraku's.

* * *

"So, sensei, do you have any other tips on being a ninja?" Naruto asked as he slurped down the contents of another bowl.

"Well, Naruto," He paused, taking another huge slurp from his meal. "There are some pieces of advice I have for you, though some of it will be unpleasant."

"I'll listen. Doesn't guarantee I'll follow it, but I'll listen," Naruto assured him. Hey, the guy had just taught him more in one day than he'd learned through six years of the Academy.

"All right. First, and most unpleasant; uniform," Iruka stared his orange jumpsuit up and down. "I know you don't want to hear this, but it will certainly make your Shinobi career easier if you dress in something darker, or that better camouflages with your surroundings. Even wearing something red, but less bulky, could really help you with your Taijutsu."

Naruto stared at him thoughtfully, and then began pulling at his jumpsuit. "You really think so? I mean I really like the look-"

"The look isn't the problem really," Iruka commented. "I mean, Sakura wore a dress to class every day. But again, if you were watching her," When wasn't Naruto watching Sakura back in the Academy, "She did really poorly in Taijutsu, and I think the poor mobility her dress offered her had something to do with it," He explained. "It's just something you might consider. I can give you the name of a pretty good Shinobi supply store, if you want?"

Naruto looked at his outfit thoughtfully once more. Maybe it was time for a change after all. "All right. It can't hurt to look and see if there's something I like better," He finally agreed.

"While we're on the subject of Sakura, fawning over her is something I'd recommend against," Iruka advised wisely.

"But Iruka-sensei, Sakura-chan is-!"

"I know Naruto. But take it from the guy who was a love-struck Genin before you were. It doesn't help," He advised sagely. "There was this girl on my squad I was absolutely crazy about. Long black hair, beautiful night-black eyes, and a figure to die for. I don't think I was ever as obsessive as you are, but it was sure close. And the way I constantly followed her around, well… I guess there was a reason it took me five years to advance from Genin to Chunin," He finished jokingly. "But hey, she eventually went out with me!" He added as an afterthought. 'And then dumped me.'

"Really! How'd that happen?" Naruto asked, half excited, half curious.

"Well, when I stopped following her around and began devoting my time to becoming a better ninja, eventually… she became interested," He finished lamely. "I'm just saying, it could work better than what you've been trying for the past couple of years."

"All right, sensei," Naruto agreed, putting that rain of thought on hold. "Anything else?"

"Well, for now, one last thing. Observation," Iruka stared at him shrewdly. "Do you know how I always knew you were slacking off or causing trouble?" Naruto shook his head vehemently. "Right next to the blackboard, there was this mirror that I used to discreetly glance back at the class. Whenever I saw something that might be amiss, I used my special detection jutsu to target the area behind me and find out what was going on," Iruka confessed. "What I'm trying to say is; be less prone to rushing recklessly into things, and more cautious and observant of your surroundings. Trust me kid, it helps."

"That's pretty cool, sensei. Think I could learn that jutsu?" Naruto asked, thinking of all the ways such a jutsu could help him with pranking, and kind of ignoring his warnings about being observant. But then again, he probably couldn't get the blasted thing to work. But then again, that warning might come in handy later…

"Maybe later," Iruka replied as Ayame handed him the bill and he began to weep. "There goes my salary," He moaned sadly, as he reached for his wallet.

* * *

_Next Day_

"Does this look better, sensei?" Naruto asked, presenting his new attire.

"When'd you get that?" Iruka asked curiously, surveying his new attire of a black shirt with blood-red sleeves, red pants, and an orange sash.

"After we finished eating yesterday. How does it look?" Naruto asked. "If it doesn't look right, I can return it. You were right; that shop was pretty good. Good deals and all."

"Not bad. Pretty good actually. I think red looks pretty good on you," Iruka complimented. "How does it feel to fight it?"

"Thanks, sensei. This actually feels like it fits better," Naruto remarked offhandedly. "I sparred with a clone last night and I felt like my Taijutsu was a bit better."

"Oh, by the way, when you dispelled the clones yesterday after we trained, did you do that all at once?" Iruka asked, as he remembered one of the things he felt he needed to know. Naruto's clones hadn't finished reading, and they'd left them working yesterday.

"Yeah. It gave me a pretty bad headache," Naruto complained.

"That makes sense. I was doing a little reading about the technique, and they warned not to dispel more than five at one time. Keep that in mind today. But I did find out the clones were good for chakra control training, so perhaps we'll devote a little more time to that. By the way, how well do you remember what your clones read yesterday?" Iruka asked.

Naruto shrugged. "Pretty well. There are some bits and pieces that I can't remember, though."

"All right, create more clones than yesterday, and we'll assign some to reread the books they read through yesterday, get some of them to read other books, and then put the last few doing more chakra control exercise," Iruka explained. "And while they're doing that, we'll work on some more Taijutsu, accuracy, and Hand Seals. Sounds like a plan?"

"Um, two things, sensei. One, I ran across something called fūinjutsu in one of the books the other day. Can you tell me what that is? Two, should I create more clones, Henge them, and send them off to the library- and if so, what should they search for? Actually, I guess it's three. Can you tell me more about the You-Know-What sealed within me?" Naruto rounded off in quick succession.

Iruka paused, thinking what he'd said through. "All right, send a few dozen Henged clones off to the library to read through more Shinobi Reference books, and make sure they don't cause a disruption." Naruto did as he was told. "Now then, fūinjutsu is the art of sealing something within something. I don't know much else about it. As for the demonic furball," Naruto chuckled slightly, "It attacked Konoha twelve years ago, and was sealed inside of you by the Fourth Hokage. Afterwards, the Third passed a law making sure it couldn't be talked about publicly. Um, I think it's what gives you so much chakra- you have an absolutely immense amount- and if I remember correctly from what I saw in class, it helps you heal faster. And that's about all I know about that," He finished. "Can you talk with it or something? See what it has to offer and that sort of thing?"

Naruto paused. "Should I try that?"

Iruka shrugged, though inside he was very worried about the ramifications of his innocent suggestion. "Sure," He agreed at last. "You should do it now, where I can watch and make sure nothing happens."

"All right," Naruto agreed, lying down on the ground. "Do I just go to sleep or something?" Iruka nodded slightly. "Fine, then." Like Shikamaru, he started watching clouds float across the sky, before he slowly drifted off to sleep.

* * *

"Wow, what a shithole," Naruto muttered, staring at the filthy sewer in his mind where the Kyuubi apparently resided nowadays.

**"If you don't like it, then do something about it, you fucking moron!"** Roared a demonic voice as glowing red eyes appeared from behind the bar.

"Okay, I will!" Naruto shouted back. Hey, it was his mind, right? And he had better things to do than be bitched at by a giant demon fox. He closed his eyes, and began concentrating on a massive grassy plain, with the Kyuubi still sealed away in a pen. He opened his eyes and stared at his handiwork. Oh, and the massive nine-tailed demon fox spread out before him. It was a massive orange fox with gigantic, sharp-looking teeth, and nine, huge, orange tails. Well, that was a demon all right. "Woah!"

**"I didn't think you actually would,"** Kyuubi muttered. He paused. **"So my jailor stands before me. What do you want? Come to-"**

"Hey, chill out!" Naruto suggested mildly. "I just came here to… chat, I guess," He finished lamely. "I mean, you're kind of imprisoned here in my body. I just wanted to know more about you. Can I at least make you feel more comfortable or something?"

Kyuubi chuckled, with a deep, rumbling laugh. **"You… want to make me feel more comfortable!? That's rich! All humans are the same!"**

"Hey, demon-fox, I just thought I'd offer. No need to laugh," Naruto explained. 'An upset biju inside me probably isn't a good thing.' "Seriously though, anything other than freedom I can get you? I don't think I can get you that. But anything else, since this is my mind and all?"

The fox paused its laughter, considering his offer. It seemed to be on the up and up, all things considered. "**I'll be sure to let you know if I have a request,"** It said finally, deciding that his captor was for real. **"I heard you talking; you want to know what benefits I give you?"**

"Yeah, I guess. I mean, I do know I heal pretty fast, and I apparently have huge chakra reserves, but what else is there that I don't know about?" Naruto questioned. Hey, this was actually turning out to be a pretty civil conversation. Surprise, surprise.

Kyuubi shrugged, seeing no harm in answering. _"_**Huge reserves, fast healing, super-strength, and sharper reflexes. Oh, and I suppose I can enhance your senses. Want me to?"**

"Um, sure. Well, that's… cool," Naruto finished finally. Well, he'd gotten what he came for. "Um, it was nice talking to you. If you need me, feel free to ring whenever I'm asleep. I'm going to go now. Enjoy," Naruto said as he left his mindscape.

* * *

"Are you all right?" Iruka asked worriedly as Naruto returned to consciousness.

Naruto picked himself up off the ground. "Are you wearing cologne, sensei?"

Iruka shook his head. "I had a date last night, but no, I didn't put any cologne on. It seems rather silly to wear cologne to review sessions. Doesn't it?"

"Oh, that's it then. Yeah, Kyuubi told me about super-strength, better reflexes, enhanced senses, huge chakra reserves, and my quick healing," Naruto rounded off. "I have to admit, it was pleasant for a giant demonic fox that was trapped in my head."

"Oookayy," Iruka said, shaking his head. Well, this was one of the most surreal conversations he'd ever been a part of. "Shall we get back to training?"

A huge grin appeared on Naruto's face. "Let's do that!"

* * *

_Hours Later_

"And that's the last of the Hand Seals, sensei!" Naruto shouted excitedly.

"Another ninja tip, Naruto. Be calmer. You'll go a lot further as a ninja if people think that you're always calm, collected, and in control," Iruka remarked idly, rubbing his ears.

"Okay. We're done with Hand Seals?" Naruto asked eagerly.

"Yup. Your Taijutsu form is better, though I still kick your ass when we spar," Let the revenge continue, "And your accuracy is way better today. Lots of eights and nines out of ten targets hit. As for your hand seals, they're getting there. Now then, slowly dispel your clones; five at a time, and wait twenty seconds between dispels. I'll count."

It took a bit, but at last all of his clones were dispelled, flooding Naruto's head with information, and giving his chakra control another boost. "All right, and now it's time to teach you one of the jutsus I promised."

"All right, sensei! Let's do this!" Naruto declared feeling pumped.

"All right. Well, I never named this jutsu, so perhaps you can have the honor. Anyway, I send a pulse of chakra through the earth, and that's how I knew who was out of their seats and disrupting my class back when you were in school," Iruka explained. "I can do it without seals, but to train, you'll probably need to work with the Serpent Seal. Now form the Seal," Naruto did as Iruka told him, "And try molding your chakra so that you can feel the Earth around you. Just let it saturate for a minute or two. And then tell me what you feel."

After a minute or two of doing what Iruka told him, Naruto said, "I feel… something. It's kind of vague, but I can feel you in front of me, and I think… there's someone watching us."

Iruka shrugged. "There might be. It's a free village, and there's no law saying you can't watch ninjas train. Now, try it again, and try and get a clear picture of your surroundings. This is a good jutsu to practice when you get home. But now… it's time for more ramen!" He declared dramatically.

* * *

_Four Days Later_

"I think that jutsu is coming along pretty nicely," Naruto remarked as he met Iruka in front of the Academy. "And tomorrow I get my ninja I.D!"

Iruka chuckled. "Glad to hear it, Naruto. Just don't do something like I did and make a funny face when you take that picture, or no one will take you seriously for the next year or so."

"Right, sensei. Shall we get to work?" Naruto asked. How did his sensei know exactly what he was planning to do? "I really want to get those Hand Seals and that Weapons Accuracy stuff down today."

"Okay. Let's begin. First create your clones," Naruto created hundreds of clones, and divvied them up as usual. "Today, instead of having the ones on chakra control do the leaf exercise, have half of them work on that tree walking exercise I showed you briefly yesterday," Naruto shrugged and complied. His sensei was right; that chakra control stuff was pure gold. "Now let's get to work on your Taijutsu. Your forms are really coming along, but you're still more of a brawler than a ninja, kid."

* * *

_Hours Later_

"And that's the last of them!" Naruto declared triumphantly as he flashed through Dragon one final time.

"Very good, Naruto. You've really come far!" Iruka congratulated. "Oh, and before I forget, tomorrow, after your registration, you're going to take the Genin exam again, just so you can see how much you've improved." Naruto groaned outwardly, but inside, he felt pretty excited about seeing how far he'd come as a ninja in such a short time. "Trust me; it'll be fun showing how smart you are now. But anyway, I have two final things for you today. One's a jutsu; but we'll get to that in a second. First, here." He held out the piece of paper he'd bought that morning.

"Is that the Affinity paper?" Naruto asked, having read about it a few days earlier.

"Yup. Channel your chakra through it, and it shall reveal all," Iruka declared dramatically. Naruto took it and channeled his chakra into it, and the paper subsequently shredded into multiple pieces. Iruka looked pretty impressed.

"A Wind Element? Wow, those are supposed to be really rare, especially around here. I don't really know much about it, but I'll drop off what notes I have on how to train Wind tomorrow, all right?" Naruto nodded. "Now then, I also have a jutsu to teach you. Actually it's two parts. Remember how I showed you how to make an explosive tag yesterday?

"Yeah, that was pretty cool. Actually, fūinjutsu is pretty cool. I thought it was really boring, the way you described it," Naruto admitted sheepishly, rubbing his head.

"Yes, well," Iruka tried to move past the awkward moment. 'He was still a boring teacher, even after all of this work!' "The first part is just placing explosive tags in a given area; stealth, speed, reflexes- that sort of thing works for this part. The second part is tying them all to you, so that you can detonate them on command." He passed something to Naruto. "You use that pattern on an explosive tag to do so, and they have to all be aligned correctly in a square. That's why it's called Sealed Bomb Square Release," Iruka explained.

"So I basically distribute tags around an area, and then detonate them with those Hand Seals?" Naruto asked after his sensei had flashed through them. Iruka nodded eagerly. "All right then. I assume this is one I should work on in my own time?"

"Yup, same with your element," Iruka chirped happily, glad that his day wasn't going to end with him being splattered in wood chips. Because he was really and truly afraid of that possibility. "In your own time, but I'll help; though since you'll soon be a ninja, and I'll have another class to teach, the times that overlap should greatly diminish soon."

"Yeah," Naruto muttered glumly. "But hey, it's not that time yet," He perked up.

"Nope. Not yet," Iruka chuckled. "But for now, ramen!"

* * *

"You're all set, Naruto," The Hokage remarked as he handed him his new ninja registration. "By the way, I'm glad to see that you've gotten rid of that old jumpsuit."

"Thanks, Jiji. Iruka-sensei recommended that I should do it," Naruto replied as he took the I.D. 'And Iruka-sensei has proven to be on the money this week.'

"I'm glad to see that he has been such a positive influence on you," The Hokage remarked. "Take care, Naruto. This old seat and hat are waiting for you when you're ready."

"I'll be ready soon, Jiji," Naruto remarked as he attempted to leave. The only trouble was, he collided with a short kid with spiky hair who'd tripped over his scarf on the way in while he was shouting about being Hokage.

"You! You tripped me!" He shouted angrily at Naruto.

Naruto sweatdropped. "Yeah, no I didn't. That scarf though… yeah, that might be the culprit. Later Jiji," He remarked as he again tried to leave the room.

"Don't you know who I am? I'm the Hokage's Grandson! Now apologize!" The little kid shouted.

Naruto shook his head. "I respect the Hokage because he's earned it, time and time again. But if you expect me to bow to you just because you're his Grandson, well then, expect to be disappointed." As he left, the boy flung a Shuriken right at him. Seeing it out of the corner of his eye, Naruto turned and deftly caught it in his outstretched hand, just like Iruka had shown him when they had taken a break during training. It was a pretty good mindfuck, as long as he could resist a little pain; which he definitely could, considering his tenant. His hand, which had been cut from the impact of catching the Shuriken, quickly healed, unnoticed to the boy. "Thanks for that, kid. I'll be sure to put it to good use. Later."

"Who was that guy?" Konohamaru whispered in awe as Naruto left.

* * *

"Yeah, I don't know if anyone has told you, but rocks aren't square," Naruto pointed out calmly. Please, let it not be the same brat from earlier. Please, let it not be-

The boy jumped out from his poor rock disguise, spoiling Naruto's prayers. "How did you know I was here!?"

"Rocks. Aren't. Square," Naruto repeated slowly for the boys benefit. "Who are you, kid?"

"Komohamaru," He muttered. "That's my name." A look of disgust flashed across his face. "But no one ever calls me that. Ever. It's always 'Honorable Grandson', or 'The Hokage's Grandson.' I thought my name was pretty easy to remember." He kicked a nearby rock. "And no one ever sees who I am, just all the stuff my Grandfather has done. I want people to acknowledge me for me." He got a look of fiery determination in his eyes. "And that's why I want you to train me, Boss."

Naruto shrugged. He would have said no, but this kid reminded him a lot of himself only and his situation only a week prior. "All right, I'm kind of busy, so I only have a short amount of time. Here, I'll teach you a jutsu that should prove pretty useful."

He had just finished teaching Konohamaru his special Henge when a guy with dark hair and sunglasses appeared. "Honorable Grandson, it is time that you stop associating with this rabble and return to your lessons," Ebisu declared as he stared coldly at Naruto.

"No. No way! He actually taught me something cool today! Watch! Oiroke No Jutsu!" With a puff of smoke, he transformed into a beautiful naked woman. She proceeded to wink at Ebisu, which resulted in a few drops of blood dripping from his nose.

"Honorable Grandson! This jutsu is unworthy for someone of your stature! You must return to your training immedietly! After all, the only guaranteed shortcut to Hokage is through my teachings!" Ebisu replied, absolutely mortified.

"Hey, sunglasses guy. I'd just like to point out that even if it mortifies you, the kid can now do a Henge. Up, I taught him something before you did. That is all, I'll be going now," Naruto said, attempting to leave.

It finally sunk in what Naruto had accomplished, and Ebisu stared at his young student in shock. "Honorable Grandson! This is simply incredible!"

Naruto shook his head at the man's attitude. "The rest is for your sensei, kid," Naruto said calmly. "I have to go now."

"But Boss, he doesn't teach me any cool jutsus like you! How am I ever going to become Hokage if I don't learn any jutsu!?" He whined.

"Listen kid," Naruto said, while turning around and taking off his goggles. If this kid wanted to act like his junior clone, then he needed this to pull it off. He placed them on Konohamaru's forehead, "Don't let anyone tell you that there's a shortcut to being Hokage. If you really want it, just like I do, then you're going to have to prove you're worthy. You're going to have to prove you're better than me. You need guts, brains, and tenacity, because you're going to fail, but if you try, and do your best, maybe one day I'll take of the Hokage's hat and hand it to you."

Konohamaru stared at him as he walked away. "Fine. You aren't my teacher anymore. From now on, we'll be rivals!"

Naruto shrugged unseen to the kid. "That's fine kid. I have an appointment to keep, anyway."

* * *

"You Pass!" Iruka told him as he finished grading Naruto's exam. "You did, much, much better than last time, Naruto. Almost as good as Sasuke did, and with just one week of hard training, that's saying something."

"Thanks, sensei," Naruto muttered with a blush. He wasn't used to praise like this. "I mean, all of the reference books you told me to look through had a lot of stuff on basics of Shinobi life and Geography and Important Historical Events. And we worked on my accuracy and my Taijutsu, I think that was where I lost most of those points, and I have the basic three down now."

"You've really come far, Naruto," Iruka remarked, shaking his head. "And you have still further to go." He leaned forward. "I have a treat for you. I'm not really supposed to do this, but I can't see the harm in you knowing." He paused dramatically. "I know who your Jounin sensei is going to be!"

"Who?" Naruto asked eagerly.

"Hatake Kakashi." The name held no meaning for Naruto. "Thing is, he's always late; like two to three hours later, so bring something else to do," Iruka advised him.

"I will, sensei. I'm still trying to figure out the fūinjutsu code, so maybe I can get some work done with that tomorrow," Naruto told him.

"Fūinjutsu code?" Iruka queried curiously.

"Yeah, the way all of the fūinjutsu manuals I've encountered are written, anyone new to the art has no hope of understanding what's going on. So I've been trying to translate it for the past few days," Naruto told him. "By figuring out which parts of which seal do what."

"I always found basic fūinjutsu pretty easy Naruto, so if you need some tips, feel free to stop by after class," Iruka told him.

"So our training sessions are over?" Naruto asked, as what his sensei had said finally sunk in. He paused awkwardly. "I'm going to miss this, sensei."

"And I'm going to miss it too, Naruto," Iruka replied sadly.

Naruto perked up. "But hey, you'll still be around, and I can still visit you!"

"Yes. And I'll want to hear all about your missions. Except the D-ranks; you'll find out about the ninja's bane soon enough," Iruka joked, though his student didn't catch his meaning. "Remember, if you ever need advice, don't hesitate to ask," Iruka commented.

"I won't sensei. Hey, since I didn't answer any questions today- except for that test- race you to Ichiraku's and loser has to pay!" Naruto belted as he got off to a sizeable head start.

"Hey, that's not fair! You'll bankrupt me!" Iruka yelled as he sprinted to catch up with his troublesome if he was worried out of his mind about how he was going to pay for Naruto's meal, a part of him recognized that what his sensei once said was true, and that Naruto was to him as his sensei had been for Iruka._"And you are that student for me, kid."_


	2. Chapter 2

AN: I didn't expect to continue this fic quite so quickly. But my ideas in some other areas dried up, so I figured why not. Anyway, here is the next installment of this fic. I don't own Naruto, and I hope you all enjoy.

Chapter One: "You're Not Quite What I Was Expecting"

It must have been very odd to walk back into the Academy the morning of team assignments and one see Naruto Uzumaki sitting in the front and feverishly pouring over a scroll the day of Genin Team Assignments. Naruto Uzumaki- dobe, loudmouth, class clown, guy who'd failed the Graduation Exam three times, and all around screw up- was sitting there, without a care in the world, as his eyes darted back and forth from symbol to symbol as he hastily scribbled notes and tapped his pencil against certain parts of whatever he was studying. Very odd indeed.

"Naruto? What are you doing here? This is only for people who passed," Shikamaru commented lazily. The guy was… actually studying something. He was quiet, he was distracted from being annoying, he was focused on something that looked academic in nature… the apocalypse was coming. That was the only explanation for what was happening.

"Sorry, what was that Shikamaru? I wasn't listening," Naruto said, his eyes never leaving the scroll. His future sensei would have been proud.

"I said… you know what? Forget it; this will become way too troublesome too fast," He muttered taking a seat a few rows behind him. Chouji shook his head and took a seat right next to his best friend. Not that Naruto noticed.

More and more people started flocking into the room. Including one Sasuke Uchiha, who, upon seeing that Naruto was there, silently walked over and sat next to him. Thankfully, Naruto's self-awareness kicked in precisely at that moment as he accidently glanced in Sasuke's direction. Realizing what that might mean, his expression quickly became one of abject horror.

"Oh, hell no! Sit somewhere else teme," Naruto growled to him. Looking back more in depth on his time in the Academy with his Iruka-sensei, he realized that there were some trends to be found; in this case, where Sasuke went, his fangirls would soon follow. And with where he was sitting…

Sasuke idly turned his head to return fire with a glare. "No." Naruto was ready to hit him.

"Then I'm moving. I'm not going to be here when your fangirls brawl over the honor of sitting next to you." With that, Naruto picked up his research material and promptly vacated the seat. Just in the nick of time to, as that was the moment when Ino and Sakura loudly entered the room.

Naruto briefly entertained the idea of heading over and asking Sakura out on a date while he was moving to another seat before ruthlessly stamping on it. Maybe Iruka-sensei was right. Maybe he was trying too hard. Besides, he was a ninja now. As pretty and awesome as Sakura-chan was, he had a responsibility to the village first and foremost. And he wouldn't let Jiji or his sensei down in that regard. Besides, it's not like his sensei's advice could leave him any worse off in that area- she hadn't dated him yet-, so why not try it?

Finally, he set his stuff down next to the girl with the bulky clothes and the weird white eyes. The Byua- the Bura, the Byakugan; that was it! She went red and started poking her fingers together nervously. However, now that he had a new spot, Naruto had promptly returned to work, and so he didn't notice his effect on her. He was too absorbed in his fūinjutsu project.

In doing all the remedial reading Iruka-sensei had recommended, he came across a bunch of references to the art. It sounded simple enough, and cool enough. Draw symbols in a certain way, infuse chakra into it, and BAM! Result. Considering that little symbols and a ton of chakra were enough to imprison the mightiest demon, Naruto had naturally been interested. And it didn't hurt that he was living proof of the extreme usefulness of the art.

So he'd sent a few of his clones to scour for an introductory text or two. The trouble was, it might as well have been written in another language for all their usefulness. Even the introductory texts started talking about sealing matrices, chakra auditory feedback systems, compression sealing, limited feedback loops, and integral sealing cores; in other words, complete gibberish to an outsider. It was rather like listening in to a shouting match between two experts of the art, both talking Academic-ese, who did not know how to simplify their explanations.

Even with such an insurmountable obstacle, Naruto's interest in this area had not waned. Certain that his clones had missed something; he'd personally looked over a couple of one of the textbooks. His clones weren't wrong; it was almost completely gibberish. But then something Iruka-sensei had said a while back while they were reviewing something began working the cogs in his mind. "_In code_."

Perhaps… maybe it _was_ in code. After all, this was a powerful art; high reward, lower than average risk. A fūinjutsu master wouldn't want any Academy Student or Genin to pick up their texts and magically recreate their seals in six months. After all, there was so much involved in a simple seal that if everyone had access, then the art became useless. Part of its advantage was that not many people studied it; maybe because of how inaccessible it appeared to be. Oh sure, many people were capable of making their own sealing scrolls and similar things, but the high levels of skill that could be used to, say seal away a demon, were totally out of reach to them. So the choice was either work through the code, or find a proper teacher. Good luck with that finding a proper teacher bit. But if it was in code…

It made sense that these texts would only reveal their secrets to those truly dedicated. Even his sensei confirmed that there was a certain logic to his theory. So, even though it had been one of his poorer areas in the Academy, he set about trying to crack the code. This mainly involved reading out texts and trying to discern noticeable patterns with the few seal diagrams provided. So far, the only thing he'd found to this point was what he was pretty sure was the control matrix; the part every seal needed to function and mold chakra into the written commands. Still, he was hard at work; so much so that he even missed Iruka-sensei's arrival in the room.

"-QUIET!" Iruka snapped in characteristic fashion. Almost immediately, the class settled down, and Naruto actually snapped his head up from what he had been working on. "Now then, as of today, you are all official Shinobi in the service of Konohagakure no Sato. The expectation is that you will all carry out missions and assignments as the best of your ability for both your home and your comrades." He paused for a moment. "I just want to say that I'm proud of all your achievements and I wish you luck as Shinobi and Kunoichi in the service of our village." Another pause. "Now I'm going to begin announcing of the squads you will be placed on for the duration of your time as Genin. Team One is…"

He read down teams One through Six with no issues. "Team Seven will be Uzumaki Naruto," Naruto's ears perked up slightly, "Haruno Sakura," Sakura lowered her head at the news, which torpedoed the elation he had felt at being placed on the same team as her. Well, if she was going to be like that…, "And Uchiha Sasuke. Your instructor will be Hatake Kakashi."

"Shannaro!" Sakura shouted jovially. "Take that Ino-pig! True love conquers all!" Naruto just sank his head lower into the scroll. That. Hurt. He'd been so ready to take his sensei's advice, and now… Ugh. Why? Whose idea was it to place them all together on a team? Was the person organizing this a sadist? "Now we're on the same team Sasuke-kun. Isn't that great?" Sakura practically purred.

Sasuke turned away while muttering "Hm." Naruto was tempting to actually start banging his head against the desk. Had he killed a child in his past life or something? What karmic misdeeds had he performed to deserve this?

Iruka plowed through the interruption and announced the members of Teams Eight and Ten -Nine was still in circulation-, before dismissing them for lunch and telling them all to return afterwards to meet with their jounin sensei's. As people began filing out of the room, Naruto briefly entertained the idea of hanging out with Iruka for lunch, before he squashed it ruthlessly. His sensei had talked a lot about how being a Genin was one of the best and worst times of his life; and he'd said it was mostly because of his team. Well, even if he hated Sasuke, and Sakura seemed to love to break his heart into little pieces… For better or worse, they were his new team, and he had to get to know them.

* * *

"Where do you want to have lunch?" Naruto asked idly as he followed behind Sasuke and Sakura, who was busy fawning over the teme. At least his comment had the effect of stopping Sakura's annoying date requests, which were beginning to get on both Naruto's and Sasuke's nerves for very different reasons. Why Sasuke? Why couldn't she give him a chance? Well fine, she wouldn't give him the time of day, he'd just have to return the favor. Like he could ever really follow through on that, though.

"Naruto-baka! But out!" Sakura snarled. "So Sasuke, do you want to go on a date or-?"

"No," Sasuke replied swiftly, walking past her, hands in his pockets. He only stopped when he heard the loud 'Clap!' from Naruto's subsequent facepalm. Why? Why? Why? Why couldn't it be Kiba or Choji or the white-eyed girl, or anyone else, really?

"Okay, maybe you're not getting it, but we are supposed to be a team. Even if I don't like him and I followed you around like a love-struck puppy in the past, we need to put that aside because we're supposed to be a team now," Naruto declared as he folded his arms. "And act like mature ninja. Let's have lunch together and try to act like the Team we're supposed to be." Please let it work. Please let it work. Please let it work.

His sensei had drilled it into his head how important it was to have a functioning Genin team. He always talked about how dysfunctional his own team had been at the start, though they'd gradually become fond of each other. But yeah, nearly killing each other with totally uncoordinated moves… didn't sound like much fun. He really didn't want a repeat of that fate. A fate it seemed he was destined for, unless he changed thins in a hurry.

Sakura and Sasuke glanced at each other for a moment before replying, "No!" In unison and walking off, Sakura still begging Sasuke for a date. Sasuke snarled, and began physically running away from her.

Naruto stared at them while sweatdropping. "Seriously, don't they know how important teamwork is?" He muttered before walking off as well. Maybe he should go with his original plan of lunching with his former sensei. It certainly seemed like a better option than standing here sadly watching them walk away.

But the entire episode had been observed by one person, who chuckled at Naruto's comment and muttered, "So glad you agree with me," Before disappearing in a swirl of leaves.

* * *

"So it didn't work out?" Iruka asked curiously in between mouthfuls of ramen. Naruto had caught up with him pretty quickly, and upon hearing his favorite student's plight, he'd agreed to go to lunch with him. "Maybe if you-"

"I know what you're going to suggest, and I'm pretty sure it won't work right now. They don't know how I spent the last week, sensei," Naruto pointed out. "Do they really have any reason to think anything has changed?" He paused for a second. "Look, sensei. I don't think this is something that will happen easily or overnight. It's something I have to really work towards, just like being Hokage."

"I'm sure you'll succeed eventually with both," Iruka assured him. "Just remember that you're all twelve-year olds. And as hard as it may be to believe, people your age aren't the easiest people to get through to. Trust me on that," He said with a smirk.

Naruto scowled. "Thanks for the confidence, sensei," He remarked sarcastically. He glanced around. "So what do you know about my new sensei?" He asked conspiratorially. Hatake Kakashi… the name meant nothing to him.

"Kakashi? Well, I probably shouldn't say too much. But…" Naruto leaned forward eagerly. "He is a former Anbu. He's very well known throughout the Elemental Nations. And his nickname is Copycat Kakashi. That's about all I can tell you," Iruka finished, and then he went back to eating.

Naruto was about to whine, when a thought flashed across his mind. "Why exactly is that all you can tell me?" He asked curiously. "I mean, I'm pretty sure this in itself isn't that confidential information. It sounds like all you've really told me is a basic summary of him that any high ranking ninja would know."

"Very perceptive Naruto. But again, I can't say more," Iruka repeated.

"Fine, sensei," Naruto grumbled. "It's not like I need your help. I can meet the man myself in a few hours."

Iruka paused. "Fine, here's one other tidbit that you might find useful: he's always three hours late to anything."

Naruto's eyes widened. "Seriously? Three hours? That seems a little… excessive."

"It is what it is, Naruto. Kakashi has many… personality quirks. Some more annoying than others. I'm sure you'll grow to love them all," Iruka said cheerfully. His student would meet his match in annoying character traits, of that he was certain.

"Gee, thanks," Naruto replied through another mouthful of ramen. "Your confidence is really inspiring. Forget teacher; you should have been a motivational speaker," He grumbled, not noticing a person next to him.  
"Uzumaki-san, can I have a moment of your time?" Rang out a familiar voice from his side. Both Naruto and Iruka turned, though Naruto groaned internally when he saw who it was. It was the same glasses wearing guy from yesterday.

"Sure. What can I do for you?" Naruto responded with faux-cheerfulness. Mostly because his sensei was right there and would be rather cross at the kind of language he really wanted to use right now.

Ebisu cleared his throat. "I just wanted to say… well…that I was wrong." Naruto stared at him; what? "You managed to teach Honorable Grandson more in a single day than I have in all the time I worked with him. For that I commend you. I wish I could get through to honorable Grandson the way you could."

Whatever he was expecting; this wasn't it. Still, even if he didn't like this guy, he could be tactful. He seemed disappointed that Naruto was more capable of teaching Konohamaru than he was. Maybe if he gave him a suggestion or something it would get him off his back. "You do realize you're trying to teach him like he's a fully grown and mature Shinobi?" Naruto querried thoughtfully. Ebisu actually seemed to be listening intently. What a switch. Or maybe he was desperate. "Trust me; it didn't work on me, and you saw who he got along with…" He paused. "If you really want to get through to him, you have to make it flashy. Throwing kunai; it's boring- unless you're really, really good at it. Jutsu? Who cares what the textbook says? You have to see and try many to really get what they're all about. Tiajutsu? You can look at diagrams until you're blue in the face; sparring is where it's at. I think practice beats theory every time. But hey; what do I know? I'm just a Genin."

Ebisu smirked playfully. "You will never be just a Genin, Uzumaki-san." He was silent for a moment. "Though most of my time is spent mentoring Honorable Grandson, if you ever need help in your training, I will do my best to provide assistance." His sunglasses flashed. "Good day, Uzumaki-san." And with that, he left.

Something didn't seem right. Naruto shrewdly turned his head towards Iruka. "You did something, didn't you?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Iruka muttered as he pointedly looked away. It had been rather simple to chat with his old teammate and set things straight. Ebisu had come around… eventually. But he hadn't planned on Naruto finding out.

Naruto shrugged and went to finish off his ramen. "Thanks for whatever you did, sensei."

* * *

Only Sasuke, Sakura, and Naruto remained in the Academy classroom. Everyone else had been summoned by their jounin sensei's, and now only Kakashi's students remained. Two thirds of them were not dealing particularly well with the long wait they were in store for.

'Damn! I'd hoped Iruka-sensei was pulling my leg. Oh well, I guess I have this fūinjutsu project to work on.' Naruto thought as he unsealed his studying supplies and went back to work on his project. To be perfectly honest, he had absolutely no idea what he was doing. Or trying to do. Well, that was a lie; he knew what he was trying to do, he just had no foreseeable way to get there. But hey, he had a lot of time to be stuck in a rut. And he'd been stuck in a rut before. With that, Naruto leaned closer to the book page, trying to properly make out the left part of the seal.

"No, Sakura! I don't want to date you! Go away!" Sasuke growled, slamming his head into the desk. And to go along with his sore head, his stomach started grumbling. Oh, this was just perfect. Maybe he should have taken the dobe up on his offer of lunch. Then again, Sakura would have tagged along, and he still wouldn't have had a moment of peace. But at least he would have had a meal, which he didn't right now because he spent his last hour trying to flee from the fangirl. Ugh.

"Sasuke-kun! What's the matter!" Sakura asked concernedly. Well, she knew what the matter was; he still hadn't gone out with her yet. That would have made everything better. But what else could it be? Maybe… "Sasuke-kun! Are you hungry?" Sakura cried. Come to think of it, she was kind of hungry too. Trying to bring eternal happiness and love to her new teammate was hard work. Well she had just the can…. No, maybe it was the other pocket. Nope, not that one either. Oh, right, she needed to watch her weight to be in perfect condition for a date with him, so she threw her candy bar away. The things she did for true love. Oh well, it would be worth it… after she stopped feeling hungry.

Naruto looked up at the sound of his teammates growling stomachs. He quietly unsealed a couple of ramen packs- never leave home without one- and passed it over to them. They both looked up at him in surprise. "Here. Eat up. From what I hear, Kakashi-sensei is always three hours late to anything, so we're going to be here for a while. Enjoy," He finished as he went back to work. Those traveling scrolls were a gift from Kami!

Without hesitation, Sasuke grabbed Naruto's offering of food and wolfed it down. Even if he hated cold ramen, or ramen in general, necessity trumped reservations. Sakura stared at it tentatively before she too took it and began to eat hungrily. "How do you know that, dobe?" Sasuke asked suspiciously, referencing what he'd said about their new sensei.

Naruto fixed him with a cold glare. "Look asshole, I'm not going to talk to you or answer your questions if that's how you're going to act." And with that, he began focusing on his work in an attempt to block out Sakura's indignant screams about how he had treated her Sasuke-kun. Which got really old, really fast to both of her teammates.

"What are you wearing, dobe?" Sasuke asked, stopping Sakura's shouting temporarily.

She finally noticed that his orange jumpsuit was gone. In its place was Naruto's new black and red outfit. It definitely looked better on him, not that she'd tell him that. But- but… Naruto always wore that jumpsuit. What was going on? Maybe this was another one of his attempts to ask her out? Yeah, that must be- no. No. It didn't really fit. She didn't even know that Naruto knew how to sit quietly, study, and act like a proper ninja before today. If he could have, wouldn't he have tried that long ago? And it seemed a little conceited to think this was all another attempt to snag a date. Sakura, if nothing else, prided herself on being a little sharper than the average Kunoichi, and that seemed like a dumb assertion.

"Finally decided to act like a ninja, eh, dobe?" Sasuke smirked slightly. Well, that was the only explanation he had.

"Look, can you two just sit quietly and let me work?" Naruto asked annoyed. "I have something to work on."

"What are you working on?" Sasuke asked, looking over Naruto's shoulder. He stared; he couldn't make heads or tails of whatever it was the dobe had been so fixated. It looked… like he was trying to decode something, but what it was, and what he was decoding it to- yeah, he had no clue.

Naruto set down his stuff. "Look. I've had a serious wake-up call in the last week about being a ninja, and I've been working hard to fix, well… everything that was wrong with me. I'm still a work in progress, but I'm getting there," Naruto explained finally. "So things will be different from now on. And that means I may be working on things like this from now on."

Sasuke paused. A serious wake-up call? What did Naruto mean when he said- "_Foolish Brother_." Okay, maybe he could understand what Naruto was talking about. Though at first his thinking was more along the lines of 'Once a dobe, always a dobe.' His change certainly seemed to work wonders. Hell, it seemed like he was dealing with a completely different person. A different person who was much, much less annoying, and much more useful to have around.

"Fair enough I guess. Just don't get in my way," Sasuke warned. He glanced back at the scrolls Naruto was working on. Well, he really had no clue. But that wasn't that important right now. "Three hours, you said?"

"Yeah, our sensei is always late to everything," Naruto cautioned. "He's a pretty famous ninja so he can get away with it." Sasuke's eyebrows rose at that tidbit. "So I think we still have two and change hours to pass before he comes."

"What am I supposed to do for two hours?" Sakura moaned. Apparently, she actually had been listening, and not plotting her next date attempt. Okay, maybe that was a hyperbole. Or maybe she was good at multitasking.

"Something useful?" Naruto suggested dryly. Before he could stop himself, Sasuke chuckled. Yeah, he and the dobe were going to get along fine, if this was how he was going to act from now on. "You know, Iruka-sensei has some pretty good books somewhere around here. Maybe in one of those closets. There's this one scroll discussing essential jutsu that you might like if you can find it."

Now Sasuke was interested. "Essential jutsu for what?"

"Any situation, really. They had the basic three, but then were a few others that were pretty useful. Like this one called Shunshin," Naruto said. "I want to see if I can learn that at some point. But if you can find it, it's a great way to kill two and a half hours."

Sasuke thought about it for a second. "Good idea, dobe."

"Yeah, it's over there somewhere," Said Naruto, pointing over his shoulder. "And don't call me dobe, asshole."

Sakura followed Sasuke while he rummaged through the closet of books Iruka kept. After a few minutes, Naruto began tuning out his surroundings and got back to work. He didn't notice Sasuke sit down beside him a few minutes later with the scroll he'd mentioned, nor Sakura sit down next to him with another one she had found. Hey, it's not like she had anything better to do. Naruto wasn't asking her out on a date, Sasuke was reading, and they still had lots of time to kill before their sensei finally showed up. So she picked something to read as well, and the room sank into silence. And it stayed that way for the next few hours.

"Team Seven? You're not quite what I was expecting," Came a voice from the doorway. All three Genin sharply turned to see Hatake Kakashi in all his glory. Of course, what they noticed first was his trademark facemask.

"Afternoon, Kakashi-sensei," Greeted Naruto as he quickly resealed his study material. He hadn't made the much progress despite all the time he'd had. But hey, there sensei was here now.

"Hmm. My first impression of this group is… you're all really boring," Naruto had to resist the urge to smack his head into the desk. He waited three hours for this? "Meet me on the roof." And with that, their sensei disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Five minutes later, they were all sitting on the roof. "Alright. Now that we're all here, why don't you all introduce yourselves?" Kakashi's tone suggested that he couldn't have cared less whether they obeyed or about whatever they told him.

"Introduce ourselves? What are we supposed to say?' Sakura asked curiously.

"Oh, the usual. Likes, dislikes, hobbies, dreams for the future, stuff like that," Answered Kakashi in a bored tone. Wow, there sensei seemed… apathetic. Again, this was what they waited three hours for?

Sakura was about to say something else, but Naruto beat her to the punch. "Okay, I'll go first. My name is Naruto Uzumaki. I like… training, hanging with Iruka-sensei," Both of his teammates turned to him in surprise, "And ramen. I dislike... well, there's a lot of stuff I dislike. But the first thing that comes to mind is sensei's that are three hours late." Kakashi gave him an eye smile. "Uh, my hobbies are training, gardening, and reading. And my dream, as I'm pretty sure everyone in the village knows by this point, is to become Hokage. Anything else I should say?"

"Nope. That's enough. How about you, pinky?" Kakashi answered. 'Interesting. I guess Iruka was right. He apparently can work miracles in a single week, because the kid in front of me and the kid I have a report on don't mesh at all. Huh, well I guess one of my potential problem genin is really no longer a problem. More time to focus on the other two. Thanks for saving me the work, I guess.'

Sakura scowled at Kakashi's choice of nickname but pressed on. "My name is Sakura Haruno. I like… well…" She glanced sideways and blushed when she saw Sasuke. "My hobbies are…" Another look, another blush, and this time Sasuke sighed while she giggled. "And my dream for the future is…" Another look, another blush, another sigh, another giggle, but this time Sakura had a slight nose bleed as well.

"Oh, kill me now," Naruto moaned. Sasuke couldn't help but agreeing with Naruto on that point.

"Shut up, Naruto-baka!" Sakura screeched. "He's what I dislike!" The rest of the team winced at the volume of her voice.

"That's… nice," Kakashi mumbled, still rubbing his ears. 'Well, this is the definition of problem student.' For a moment, he had an image of Rin subtly following him around before he promptly banished it. She had been a strong, capable Kunoichi. But Sakura…'Motivating her is going to be quite a challenge.' "Broody one, you're up next."

Sasuke scowled as well at Kakashi's choice of nickname, but did not rise to the bait. "My name is Sasuke Uchiha. I don't have any particular likes, and too many dislikes to name. I don't have a dream, because it will be a reality. I'm going to restore my clan… and kill a certain person."

Sakura blushed and squealed, 'Sasuke-kun is so cool!' in her head while her Inner personality backed her up. Naruto could only sigh and think, 'Wouldn't it just be simpler to say you want to kill your brother; the guy who murdered your clan?' While Kakashi sighed. 'It's just as I thought. I can only hope he'll eventually turn away from this path.'

"Good! So anyway, my name is Kakashi Hatake, my likes are… none of your business, my dislikes… I don't feel like telling you. I do have lots of hobbies. And my dreams for the future are none of your business," He finished proudly. "Anyway, now that we've all gotten to know each other, I'll tell you about the test for becoming a Genin."

"But sensei!-" Naruto knew what Sakura was going to say, so he decided to head her off. Suddenly what Iruka had said clicked in his mind.

"There's another test, isn't there?" Kakashi nodded with an eye-smile. 'That's why Iruka-sensei couldn't tell me too much about him! He knew there was a possibility I'd fail, and it wouldn't be fair to know about a sensei I can't study under.'

"Yup. And you should know that this test has a 66% failure rate. And the people who fail will be sent back to the Academy." At Kakashi's explanation, all three Genin's minds went blank with shock.

Naruto's was the first to wear off. 'Well, I guess all I can do is do my best and try to pass his stupid test. Maybe Iruka-sensei… no. He could barely tell me anything about the guy in the first place. Besides, I just can't keep relying on him; he's busy now, and so am I. I'm a ninja now, so I'm going to have to rely on myself for things like this.'

Sasuke's shock was the next to go. 'Another test won't make a difference. It'll be easy,' He glanced around at his teammates, 'As long a Sakura doesn't get in my way and Naruto continues to be useful.'

But Sakura hadn't really recovered. 'If I fail, then I'm going to be separated from Sasuke-kun!' "What was the Academy test about, then?" She shrieked indignantly.

"Weeding out the hopeless," Kakashi replied easily. "I decide whether you become actual Genin or not. Be at Training Ground 7 at 5:00 a.m. and bring all your weapons and gear." He paused. "Oh, and I'd suggest not eating breakfast tomorrow."

"Why?" Sakura asked quickly.

"Because you'll just throw up," Kakashi replied casually. "Later." And with that, he disappeared in a puff of smoke leaving three still-shocked Genin in his wake. There was silence for a long moment.

"Well, I guess I'd better get going. See if I have anything in store that might help out," Naruto announced. "Oh, and I think he really meant 5, and not 8, but I could be wrong. Still not sure about the whole 'don't have breakfast' thing," He muttered, starting to walk away.

"Maybe we should spend some time together and make a plan, Sasuke-kun!" Sakura suggested nervously. Sasuke-kun would know what to do! He was a genius. And so dreamy. With his eyes and his hair and-

"We don't know what the test will be, Sakura. We can't really plan for it," He replied distractedly. He thought for a second. "Well, I'm out of here," He muttered as he stood up. Dobe was right; time to take stock and see what could work.

"Wait for me, Sasuke-kun!" Sakura screeched, as she quickly followed after him, leaving Naruto alone on the roof. He sighed as he watched them run off: 'Some team they are.' He gulped slightly. 'Or maybe it will soon be "they were."'


	3. Chapter 3

AN: It's been a long time. I've been busy, busy, busy. And no signs of anything changing, anytime soon, not that anyone would really know. Anyway, to forestall complaints, no, a pairing has not been decided, but I did do something for development. Development, I'd like to reiterate. If you must flame me, keep it to the reviews and the PM's. Thank you. I don't own Naruto, and I hope you all enjoy.

Chapter Two: "Underneath The Underneath"

Naruto knocked on the door again, vaguely wondering if the Hokage had somehow given him the wrong address. Or maybe the guy was purposefully ignoring him; hoping that he'd get discouraged and go away. Or maybe he was just out; that guy had to have a life, after all. Finally, Naruto knocked once more, and was about to turn and walk away, when the door opened, and out stepped the glasses wearing special jounin he'd run into over the last couple of days.

"Uzumaki-san? What can I do for you today?" Ebisu asked politely, surprised to see him at his door mere hours after they'd talked.

"Hello Ebisu-sensei. I was wondering if I could have a moment of your time. I am in need of some advice," Naruto stated cordially. Iruka-sensei may not have been an option, but perhaps this guy was. After all, he was supposed to be training the Hokage's grandson, and that certainly seemed like a chore. If he had the ability and energy for that, then why not ask him?

"Certainly. Come in," Ebisu welcomed, hiding his confusion at the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki's visit. "Please, take a seat. How can I help you?" He welcomed into the living room where two armchairs were laid out across from one another close to a warm, crackling fire. The rest of the living room was decorated in calm, tasteful, but mostly darkish colors.

Naruto took the offered seat; the armchair was plush and comfy. "Well, I have been placed on a Genin team under Kakashi." Ebisu did a slight double-take. Hatake Kakashi? This did not bode well… "Tomorrow, we are supposed to have some sort of survival exercise to determine if we stay Genin or go back to the Academy. I was wondering if you perhaps had any advice for this upcoming trail."

Ebisu stroked his chin. "Hmm, Kakashi. I am unfortunately bound by my position to say little, Uzumaki-san. I can say that Kakashi has never passed a Genin team before," Naruto's eyes rose at that, "And that his test for Genin generally involves combat against him, but nothing else," He finished apologetically.

Naruto stared at him thoughtfully. So they had to fight? How could that result in innumerable teams failing? Unless he had ridiculously high standards. No, that didn't make sense, the Academy produced some ninja with a lot of potential, and if he was such a big name-legendary ninja and all that-, shouldn't he have first pick or something? Unless he really didn't want a team. But that didn't make sense; if he had first pick, and he didn't want a team, then why select the guy who had taken home Rookie of the Year? "Combat you say? I've heard he's a legendary ninja, but perhaps you could give me some insight into what makes him so powerful?" Naruto muttered inquisitively.

"Again, I apologize, but there is very little I can say. All I can tell you is that he is renowned as Copy-Cat Kakashi," Naruto nodded slightly- Iruka-sensei had told him that much, though he had no real idea what that meant- "And he supposedly knows over a thousand jutsu." Naruto's eyes widened at that piece of information. Well, now he knew what that meant. A Thousand Jutsu!

"And this test involves combat? What am I supposed to do against a ninja like that; raise a white flag?" Naruto scoffed sarcastically. He was assuming that the test of combat was against the man himself, because he couldn't really envision any other scenarios that made sense. It's not like they could fight each other… or could they? No, that wouldn't work. Probably. "I'm just a Genin for crying out loud!" He calmed himself down; what he was describing was an impossible test. Fighting an experienced Jounin. So if that was the impossible test he was faced with… "Do you have any tips for me?"

Ebisu shrugged. "I do not believe there is anything else I can or should tell you, Uzumaki-san," He said finally. "I know how the task seems, but I am certain you can find a way to succeed."

Naruto smiled slightly. "Thanks, Ebisu-sensei." He didn't believe that at all; not the way the deck was stacked against him. But he didn't have to say that. The man had been nothing but polite, so he should return the courtesy. "By the way, Iruka-sensei told me you were the village's expert on obtaining better chakra control, and mine is… well, pretty bad, to be frank," He confessed sadly. Though he still had that tree-walking exercise to work on, but it probably wouldn't be enough, if his sensei was correct. But as long he was here, what was the harm in learning something potentially valuable?

"I imagine it would be," Ebisu remarked easily. He didn't even need to mention the nine-tailed fox in the room. Instead, he got up from his seat and walked over to the bookshelf to retrieve a couple of scrolls. "If you would like, you can borrow these. They contain a dozen or so exercises ninja such as yourself use to obtain better chakra control. If you practice them persistently, you will find your control improving by leaps and bounds." He smirked. "And once that happens, with your reserves, you have the potential to be a Ninjutsu expert." 'And if by some miracle you pass your test tomorrow, you shall be studying under the man with more jutsu than he knows what to do with.'

Naruto took the offered scrolls and tucked them into his jacket pocket. "Thanks, Ebisu-sensei. Well, thank you for your time. You were most helpful. But I should be going; I still have to figure out how to pass my sensei's test." Ebisu walked him to the door with a slight smile on his face, as he once again tried to reassure him that he would do well tomorrow. Even if he himself didn't believe any such thing. And as Naruto left, he could say with certainty that he still didn't believe the man's assurances.

* * *

Knock! Knock! Knock!

"Hello!"

"Good evening, Iruka."

"Oh, evening Kakashi. What can I do for you?" He glanced around nervously, having no idea what this was about.

"Can I have a moment of your time?"

Another nervous twitch. "Uhh, sure I guess. Come in."

Kakashi walked in and took a seat in Iruka's living room without prompting. Iruka shuffled off to the kitchen to make a pot of tea. Kakashi calmly looked around the rather sparsely decorated room as the minutes ticked by and the water finally boiled.

"What can I do for you?" Iruka asked once again as he returned with a tray holding the tea kettle and two cups. He quickly filled both cups and took a sip from his own while waiting for an answer. Even with a little time to think, he still had no idea why Kakashi was paying him a visit. And generally, from the stories he'd heard, visits like this from high-ranking ninja were never a good thing. It meant he had probably screwed up in spectacular fashion.

"I was curious about you and one of my prospective students," Kakashi answered finally, after several moments of letting him twitch. "From his record, Naruto seemed to be much different from the potential Genin I met today," He told him neutrally. "Completely different from his file, you see. And he seemed to hold you in high regard. It didn't take much to see that there was probably a connection"

Iruka flushed slightly at the praise. And calmed down quite a bit. "Well, I spent the last week working with him, remedial stuff," He answered carefully. It was technically irregular, his week of training with Naruto, but the Hokage had signed off on it, so it was definitely legal. Just a kind of interference some Jounin sensei's might have frowned upon in different circumstances. "And, well… he's never really had anyone sit down and spend that amount of time and effort on him, I guess. So, he was quite willing to listen, and I had a lot to teach him. And I guess," He shrugged slightly, as if unsure, "It had a very positive effect on your prospective student."

"Ah, I see," Kakashi remarked calmly as he took a sip from his own cup. Iruka was amazed that he couldn't see past the mask despite the huge opportunity. But it was typical Kakashi. "I was rather curious because the Genin I met today could actually one day be quite the ninja," 'Just like his Father', "whereas the Genin described in the reports, was well…"

"Hopeless?" Iruka suggested helpfully. "A week ago, that would probably be very close to accurate. But after a week, I think he's improved quite a bit. Given a chance and a little special attention, he really is a good student. Despite what his records might indicate," He concluded sourly. Kakashi could read between the lines there. It was the worst kept secret in the world that Naruto had been sabotaged in the Academy, but there were also several ways Naruto had shot himself in the foot. Not that Iruka needed to know that. Because it was all water under the bridge, as far as the Hokage was concerned, seeing as the proper punishments had been doled out.

"What exactly did you two work on?" Kakashi asked swiftly, moving past a rather large conversational diversion. "I need to know what he is capable of doing, since I might be his jounin-sensei." Probably wouldn't happen, but anything that might, possibly, maybe put his Precious Icha Icha at risk was something to be safeguarded against. Espcially if Iruka had taught him some of his more lethal earth techniques; though that was quite unlikely due to lack of time.

Iruka shrugged. "Taijutsu was the biggest thing. His own stances were quite awful from his time in the Academy. And he really couldn't block or dodge at all. Probably because Mizuki was assigned to teach him," He mentioned casually. He had partially laid that ghost to rest. So he liked to think. "We also worked on accuracy, and remedial knowledge. You know, like naming Hidden Villages, and knowing some of their history and customs. Oh, and some of the basic justu, hand seals, and chakra control. And… well, there is one other thing I should mention," He glanced at Kakashi shiftily, debating whether to continue, "He got in contact with the Fox."

Kakashi went still. Okay, this could be very bad. Granted the Yondaime was great with fūinjutsu, but still, any contact with gigantic nine-tailed demon foxes capable of mass destruction and ruin was something to be wary of. "Did he now? Why? And how did that happen?" His eyes hardened slightly. "And does the Hokage know?"

"He was curious about it, so I suggested he try contacting it. I subtly signaled an Anbu to alert the Hokage before I did so, but it was done under our supervision, not that he knew of the latter's presence. He did meditate and contact it after he arrived, and they apparently struck a deal of some kind," Iruka remarked. "It has some benefits, like I remember him saying something about huge chakra reserves and fast healing. And I think that is responsible for his newfound interest in fūinjutsu."

"I see," Said Kakashi slowly. While it was a rather big development, the proper precautions had been taken, and apparently the village hadn't been destroyed. So it must have worked out. "Anything else?"

"Just this," Iruka got up and walked over to his desk. "After our week of training, I made him retake the Academy exam. I think the score speaks for itself." He handed the test to Kakashi who gave it a once over before nodding and handing it back to him.

"Impressive," Kakashi remarked idly. Definitely noteworthy. He was still going to fail tomorrow, but it was nice to see a student with such potential finally start taking things seriously. Poor timing, but still…"Well, thanks for your time, Iruka." He drained the last drop from his cup, "I have to get going," He said as he stood up to leave.

"Good luck with your new team, Kakashi," Iruka called out as he left. 'Hopefully you won't fail this one too.' But still, as he turned away to clean up, he knew what the likely outcome tomorrow would be. Even if he wanted to hope otherwise.

* * *

Naruto stared peacefully up at the pitch-black night sky. So many stars, and there was the light of the full moon. It was beautiful. Perfect, even. Content, he adjusted the pillow leaning on the tree and moved his blanket slightly. A slight breeze came and ruffled the leaves around him, but the blanket stayed in place with barely a ruffle. It was a nice temperate night; not too hot, not too cold. Perfect.

After he'd eaten dinner, he had turned his attention back to the problem of his upcoming Genin exam. He still had no idea whether to show up three hours late or not; this might be the one time Kakashi was punctual, and if he wasn't there… On the other hand, three extra hours of rest would probably improve his chances of passing the impossible test. Couldn't make them any worse, come to think of it. And the same could be said of breakfast; if he ate, he would probably do better, unless Kakashi found out over the course of the exercise they were doing. Found out, and had actually meant what he said. But if he didn't, he was once again at a huge disadvantage. What to do? What to do?

Finally, he'd decided to hedge his bets. He'd packed up his stuff and headed over to Training Ground Seven. He'd simply spend the night here, and he'd be fine for whenever his sensei arrived. Plus, he had some instant ramen cups with him, so if he needed it, he could have breakfast tomorrow morning. And if he woke up and was fine, then no harm was done. Hey, it was the best he could come up with. Of course, this plan might not have come to be had his neighbor next door not picked tonight to throw a rather loud and obnoxious party. So, in truth, he would probably get a better night of sleep here than he would back at his apartment. Damn, his neighbor could be loud. And all the screaming and shrieking… With how nice a night it seemed to be, he'd definitely get a better night sleep out here. Unless it started to rai- no, no, no; no jinxing it!

Content, Naruto turned slightly once more. Even the fact that he had an impossible test coming up in a few short hours just couldn't faze him at this moment. Granted, it should have, but he'd done everything he could to find out more about their sensei and the unpassable test. It was out of his hands at this point. All he could do was show up, do his best, and hope his team eked out a miracle. Besides, he had some stuff he could use. And so did his team.

The teme was, of course, class genius. He had to have something under to his cap for situations like this. Geniuses always did, from what he'd heard. And Sakura-chan was so awesome and so smart that she would know exactly what to do. Besides, he knew stuff too now. Maybe it wasn't enough to put him over the top, but he had his Shadow Clones, and he had those awesome jutsu Iruka-sensei had shown him. Maybe that would end up being enough to achieve the impossible? But what if it wasn't? And it probably wasn't, come to think it. After all, he'd failed the Genin exams thrice and had only passed due to Iruka-sensei's kindness. The more he thought about it, the more he realized that chances were pretty good that he'd meet failure tomorrow. So what did that mean for him?

Well, the answer to that question was simple: He'd just have to go back to the Academy. The boring Academy. With boring lectures. And no more cool jutsu to be learned. But Iruka-sensei was there. And maybe he could throw him a bone with a few more cool jutsus. And he could work on his Taijutsu some more. It wasn't fun, working like that, but now that he knew the basics, he could actually find himself a fighting style and start training. But even though failure could just be another avenue of success for him, Naruto was not ready to just lie down and die in the face of such a challenge. Even if his back was up against the wall, he was still going to do his best. He had come too far, worked to hard, to just give up once the going started to get tough. And really… -what was that noise?

"Hello! Is someone there?" Naruto called out, working hard to modulate his voice. Nothing. No response. But he'd heard- "You know I can hear you, right? Reveal yourself, please?" Hmm, he could swear that he had heard-

"F-fine!" Squeaked a timid sounding voice belonging to a figure that appeared from the brush in response to Naruto's shouts. Hmm, purple hair, white eyes… Hyūga? Yes, that was it! Hyūga! Uhh, what was her name? Damn it! She was in his class! How could he not know this! Maybe it was… Hira- no, wait, Hiana- no, no, sounded like… oh, Hinata! That was it!

"You're out late, Hinata," Naruto remarked idly, and the girl gave another squeak at his knowing her name. Why? Naruto had no idea. To him, she was… odd. She had- well, during his time at the Academy, the girl had always been unwilling to talk to him, and really fidgety around him. At the time, he thought it was because he made her uncomfortable, though he didn't know why. Then. He'd assumed in retrospect it was because she somehow knew or sensed that he held the Kyuubi. After all, her bloodline let her see everything, and for all he knew, she could have seen it. But here she was now. So… what did she want? Well, no reason to be rude. "Something I can do for you?"

"U-um no. So-sorry f-for distu-urb-urbing y-you," She replied shakily. She began slowly retreating, a step back at a time.

"No, wait! If you're here, you must have wanted something," Naruto deduced quietly. And maybe he could alleviate her fears. It would be nice to have one less enemy in the village. "So what can I do for you?" She looked ready to run. "Sit. Relax." Another tiny step backwards. "Please?" There was a hint of desperation in his tone. He had absolutely no idea why, on the one hand, he made this poor girl so nervous, and on the other hand, she journeyed here to see him. And he wanted to find out.

Hinata, looking like she'd rather do anything else but stay, finally, set herself gently onto the ground. She really didn't want to stay, but Naruto… well… she just couldn't refuse. Not when he asked liked that. He'd been so different lately. He wasn't loud, he was apparently absorbed in some project, and he was just… "I do-don't want an-anything," She muttered embarrassedly.

"You're still here though," He pointed out calmly. "You still sought me out. So what can I do for you? Are you nervous about the Genin exam or something and want my help?" 'As if anyone would ask the dobe for advice.' "Did I do something to anger or offend you? What's on your mind?" He rambled nervously.

"N-no!" She squeaked. "I… I a-am ner-nervous ab-bout the e-exam," She admitted after a moment of thought. She stared at him. "A-are you? Ner-nervous, I mean." He knew what she meant. Why was she acting so strangely, though?

Naruto stared at her, not sure what to make of the question or how to answer her. "Hinata, I've failed the Genin exam three times, was the class dobe, and by all expert accounts, my sensei's test is an impossible one." He paused for a moment, staring off into the woods where the test would be in a few short hours. "Failure certainly seems to be a possibility."

Hianta blanched. Again, Naruto had no idea what was up. "Y-you wo-won't fa-fail, Na-Naruto-kun," She blushed and clamped her mouth shut once she realized what she had said. Naruto swiftly turned his head back towards the girl. She looked like she was ready to stand up and run for it. But somehow, she willed herself to stay. Somehow. How exactly, Naruto had no idea.

"Naruto…kun?" He asked curiously. Where had that come from? And more importantly… "I thought you disliked me?" He remarked curiously. She vigorously shook her head, almost as if she were offended by the notion. "What was I suppose to think when you wouldn't talk to me, always tried to get away from me, and always threw me weird looks?" He asked calmly. But if she said she didn't dislike him, and had just called him Naruto-kun …

Kun? He'd never been a Kun to any girl. Especially anyone from the Academy. He'd wished more than anything that Sakura saw him that way, but it seemed never to be. Even with his sensei's advice, he somehow knew it wouldn't be enough. She would never give him a chance. Especially after the way she acted today. But Hinata… Here she was. He had no idea what to make of this strange situation.

"I'm precious to you?" He asked, not quite sure he was ready to believe it. This had to be a joke or something. A cruel trick. She didn't say anything. Which was answer enough for him. "Why?" He questioned, mostly in disbelief. No answer. Should he have expected one? "Look at me, Hinata," He said in a whisper. Reluctantly, she did. "I'm… the dobe, the guy who failed the Academy three times, and you're well…" She bowed her head, as if waiting for the hammer to drop, "A clan heiress, a strong Kunoichi a-," Her head shot up as Naruto began complimenting her. He really thought of her that way? Hope fluttered slightly in her heart. "And yet you… like me?" He whispered the last part, almost as if saying it would unravel the illusion.

Slowly, reluctantly, she nodded, afraid of his reaction. "I- I do," She admitted timidly, her eyes downcast. She was waiting for Naruto to begin laughing, or to run away, or to start mocking her, or anything except-

"Then I care for you too," He said emotionally as he slowly hugged her. Hinata seemed shocked at first, but then her arms encircled his waist, even though she felt rather faint. "I never thought that… well," He broke the hug, "That anyone could accept me knowing what I hold."

What? What did that mean? "Wait! What do you hold?" Hinata asked in a rush, buoyed by her crush's hug. She'd never understood why she'd been told to stay away from him, why the other children at the Academy had, why the young orphan was so alone. But now… she needed to know.

He stared her in the eye. Did he have to say it? She already knew, right? "The Kyuubi." Hinata froze. Had he just said…? "The Fourth couldn't destroy it, but he… he sealed it in me," Naruto explained finally. She deserved to know the full story. He saw her shocked expression. Wait, didn't she know? But from the look on her face… he was apparently wrong. And he'd just admitted his darkest secret to her. How would she react? Had he just blown this? "I thought you knew," He admitted gently.

"You… you hold the Kyuubi?" Hinata asked breathlessly, completely stunned. She could hardly imagine a gigantic nine-tailed fox of myth inside the boy she loved so much. How was it possible? And, come to think of it, why did that matter at all?

"Uh, yes. It's, well…," He patted his stomach, "I've seen the seal. I've even talked with it, once. It's sealed inside me," He repeated nervously. She had no idea how to reply to that. "From what I've seen, it's- well, it's massive," He finished lamely, failing to convey how terrifying it looked. And he would never wish that sight on her. Especially if… no, he couldn't afford to get his hopes up. This was over before it even began. Right?

"Oh," Hinata exclaimed distractedly, thinking fast. She stared at him as realization dawned on her. "Th-that's wh-why th-they don't l-like you," She whispered in shock and understanding. She looked Naruto up and down again. The sweet boy, who never gave up, who was never anything but kind or gentle, and yet he held the mightiest of demons. She'd heard the tales. Of its power. And yet… he was just Naruto. But everyone else apparently thought otherwise. It was so… so… "I d-don't care," She muttered finally. Naruto looked up at her. "I d-don't c-care that y-you hol-old Ky-kyuubi." Another look. She couldn't… he wasn't something to be feared. He wasn't a monster. Despite, she realized with a chill, the fact that everyone else in the village apparently believed him to be so.

"You don't?" Naruto asked. Before Iruka, he would never have believed it to be possible, but now… He shook his head. Sakura-chan… Sakura, she was caught up in Sasuke. She'd never given him the time of day. He wished it wasn't so but… but the girl in front of him… "Look Hinata, you seem to be a really nice girl, and you like me, for some reason," He muttered the last part, "But we haven't even talked for five minutes or anything. How about we hang around a bit, and get know each other, before we think about anything else?" He suggested nervously, having no idea what to do or what was expected in a situation like this. He had no idea what to think about her right now, but she apparently really liked him. And that counted for a lot, despite how confused he was.

Hinata blinked confusedly. "F-fine," She muttered after she'd processed what he'd rambled. "I-" She cleared her throat nervously, "I'd l-like that," She admitted, happiness seeping into her voice. Naruto's doubts faded away at her tone. She really… she really liked him. A week and change, and it would have been a pipe-dream for him to even think that there was going to be a time when he was a Genin, had a girl who liked him, and had friends he could count on. What a switch.

"Well… okay then," Naruto awkwardly replied. "How about we meet up at Ichiraku's after the Genin Test tomorrow? Maybe at one or so? Just the two of us?" He offered nervously. Hinata blushed, and nodded eagerly.

"I'd love to," She replied after a moment of thought. "I'll b-be there, Naruto-kun," She looked embarrassed once again when she said that. She was worried about how her Genin test would go, and how her father would react if he noticed her absence. But on the other hand… Naruto. This was her chance! "I- I have to g-go now," She concluded awkwardly.

"See you tomorrow," Naruto said as she got up and brushed herself off. Hinata waved clumsily and slouched away while he watched. After she'd disappeared into the brush, Naruto adjusted his blanket and pillow and turned slightly, his thoughts racing. "What a weird night," He muttered finally, as his eyes clouded and sleep finally overcame him.

* * *

"WAKE UP!" Naruto bolted upright, throwing off the sheets that had kept him covered and comfortable most of the night, and grasping for a kunai to deal with whatever threat had presented itself. He franticly looked around before his eyes locked on a bored looking Sasuke and an impatient Sakura growling slightly and tapping her foot. But, as he continued looking around, he couldn't see Kakashi.

"Where's sensei?" Naruto asked worriedly. Had the man seen him sleeping and wandered away in disgust or something. But… if that was the case, why were his teammates standing around impatiently?

"Not here yet," Sasuke grumbled. He shook his head in disgust. "It's already been two hours." Naruto had gleamed that much from the already risen sun and the forest activity around him. So if there sensei wasn't here yet, and likely to be another hour, then why had they woke him up?

"And here you are, trying to sleep the day away," Sakura complained. "Baka," She sighed in disgust. Suddenly, Naruto was feeling a whole lot better at the prospect of a date with Hinata. At least she had never insulted him first thing in the morning… not that she'd actually had the opportunity to, come to think of it. Still, the point remained; she'd woken him from a nice, peaceful night of sleep. Really peaceful; maybe he'd have to see about camping out more often?

Naruto shook his head and tried to wipe the sleep from his eyes. He yawned and stretched and threw off the blankets while gingerly getting to his feet. Still yawning, he pulled out a storage scroll and sealed away his blanket and pillow, before replacing that in his pocket and thoughtfully fingering the other scroll that contained his instant ramen cups. Should he or shouldn't he? How hungry did he feel?

After a moment of thought, he decided to go for it. He pulled out his ramen scroll and unsealed himself an instant ramen cup before putting it back in his pocket. Sakura and Sasuke watched him out of sheer curiosity.

"BAKA! Sensei said not to eat!" Sakura shrieked angrily. Hey, if she and Sasuke-kun hadn't eaten, then why should the baka be allowed to ruin it for them all? Especially when her sensei was so infuriating with all his rules.

"Didn't he also say to meet him here at 5:30?" Naruto asked shrewdly, wolfing down his makeshift breakfast. That didn't stop Sakura from leaving it be, though Sasuke watched on, most out of sheer boredom. "Hey, the way I see it, I'm going to fight better if I'm not hungry, and that little advantage is worth the potential consequence of throwing up," He remarked idly as he disposed of his empty ramen cup. "And he didn't say don't eat. He just suggested something that might happen if we did." Considering how he hadn't been sick a day in his life, thanks to a certain Demon Fox, he really didn't fear that outcome.

Yawning, and still stretching, Naruto walked over to the nearby tree he'd leaned his head against in the night, and began experimentally raising and lowering his leg to rest on it. He really couldn't train or anything- who knew when their sensei would actually show up- but he did want to do a little work on chakra control, if only to do something productive during their long wait.

Sakura was still ranting, apparently completely incensed by his disregard for their sensei's orders. But Sasuke had something else on his mind. "Dobe? Why were you sleeping outside?" He asked finally.

Naruto didn't turn or stop what he was doing. "Because who knows when our sensei would have shown up, and it seemed like a better idea to get as much sleep as I could rather than be cranky and potentially make poor choices," He answered quickly. An idea popped into his head. "Oh, you just reminded me. I did some leg-work yesterday, and it seems pretty likely that our test today is going to involve combat," He mentioned casually. Hey they were his team, and they needed to know, especially if they were going to have a prayer of passing.

Sasuke and Sakura stared at him. "Combat?" Though, on second thought, Sasuke supposed that made a lot of sense. Actually, in hindsight, why hadn't he known that? The pieces were right there in front of his face, and if Naruto had put them together, and he hadn't then-

"Yeah, combat," He repeated. He channeled a little more chakra into his leg, and it didn't stick, but the bark didn't explode either, so he must be getting closer. "I will warn you that all the people I talked to regard our sensei's test as an impossible one. He's apparently never passed a Genin team before," He said morbidly.

Sasuke did a double-take. Who the hell was the dobe talking to that he knew all of these things? And… impossible test? "What make it impossible?" He asked impatiently.

"Hell if I know! I haven't taken it yet," Naruto replied indignantly. "I just wanted to make sure you were warned." Though he was debating telling them his suspicions about how the test would involve fighting Kakashi. But on the other hand, that was mostly supposition and reading between the lines; if he was wrong, he'd never hear the end of it. Especially if the team failed.

The silence that descended was interrupted a few moments later by a poof of smoke. Kakashi had arrived. "Good morning everyone," He remarked with an eye-smile. Ah, he loved the sound of Genin bitching in the morning. It smelled like… victo- Wait, why wasn't the blond exasperated and indignant?

"YOU'RE LATE!" Shrieked Sakura, pointing angrily at the man.

Naurto shook his head. Man she was loud in the morning. "I'm pretty sure he knows that Sakura," He said with a shake of his head. "On the other hand, if he's three hours late to Jounin meeting, why should we expect anything different?" He asked thoughtfully to all assembled.

"And how do you know about that?" Kakashi asked cheerfully. He suspected that he already knew the answer.

"You didn't hear it from me, but Jiji bitches about your lateness all. The. Damn. Time," Naruto growled. Even he had caught an earful of the Hokage's displeasure; but, as he remarked time and time again, there was little he could do in a situation like this. The Jounin was too legendary to be reigned in, and it would take too much effort to do so even if he were willing. So he just lived with it… and complained like the dickens. Kakashi chuckled appreciatively; he already knew about the kid's relationship with the Hokage. But it was nice to hear he achieved the desired effect.

"Anyway, sorry I'm late, but I got lost on the road of life," He muttered, returning to his normal, uncaring manner.

"Did you get lost because you met a black cat and had to take the long way around?" Naruto asked in mock curiousness. Kakashi couldn't help but chuckle again; if nothing else, the morning might prove very entertaining. Time to get the show on the road.

Kakashi reached into his pouch and pulled out a clock he set on the training post. He reached in again and pulled out two bento boxes. With one last return to his pouch, he pulled out the infamous bells that had caused Genin over the years so much pain and anguish.

"Now I'm sure you're all wondering about your test." He gave them an eye-smile. "The test is simple." He jingled the bells. "All you have to do is get these two bells from me." Pause. "And those who don't get a bell will be sent back to the Academy for remedial training." Carrot- set. Stick- set. Let the fun begin.

Sasuke and Sakura glanced at Naruto. Who'd eaten a full breakfast and gotten a full night of sleep. How had he known? Sasuke shook his head and narrowed his eyes, determined to get a bell, despite how supposedly impossible the test was. But Sakura flinched. Impossible test? Get the bell from her sensei? A trained ninja. That was… she gulped involuntarily, not good. And… wait a second-

"Sensei, there are only two bells!" She shouted.

"Then I guess that means at least one of you will fail. Oh- whoever doesn't get a bell will be tied to the post and forced to watch as the others eat their delicious lunches in front of you," He warned cheerfully. Two stomachs gurgled at that announcement. But not a third. "I thought I told you not to eat," He pointed out warily. There went a lot of his fun.

"You didn't actually. You said that if we did, we would throw up. No offense sensei, but I don't think you can…" He idly pat his stomach. Kakashi's eyes widened a fraction of an inch- right, the Hokage had told him it was damn near impossible to get him sick. He considered making his Genin throw up as a life lesson, but he decided against it. Hey, risk- reward. Naruto had taken a calculated risk. He disapproved of the manner he had done it, but this was potential good ninja behavior.

"Meh, whatever. Good to see one of you is actually thinking," He said idly. Well, if the blond had ruined his fun, then he was just going to make it that much harder by subtly turning his teammates against him. Risk-reward. Reward-risk-cost. All was fair. And sure enough, two of his cute little Genin were glaring at the third. Perfect.

"Now then, you can use shuriken and kunai- and anything you think you'll need, really," He remarked as an afterthought. "Oh, and remember to come at me with the intention to kill, or you won't get a bell."

"But- but sensei, what if you get hurt!" Sakura asked in complete shock.

It was too much for Naruto. He burst out laughing at Sakura's question. "Y-you think he's going to get hurt!" He asked through gales of laughter. "Sakura, do you have any idea who we're dealing with! That's Hatake Kakashi!"

"BAKA!" She shrieked angrily, ready to slug him. Sasuke on the other hand, registered his teammate's reaction. The dobe had been guessing right a lot lately, and if the mere thought of them actually hurting him sent him in to peals of laughter… Sasuke looked the man up and down. Maybe there was a reason this was considered an impossible test.

Kakashi couldn't help it; he chuckled too. "I think he said better than I could," He gestured at Naruto. "Trust me, I'm good enough to avoid getting hurt." The laughter receded as tension and suspense overtook the training ground. "Now then… get ready… set… GO!"

Two Genin shot off, and Naruto was about to, when a thought hit him. This wasn't… impossible. Downright difficult, certainly, but surely, in the history of this test, just by accident or mere chance, a Genin had to have snagged a bell. Three Genin, with their own varied abilities, at once- and the Jounin hadn't always been as good as he was supposed to be now. Difficult… not impossible. But Ebisu and Iruka… where was the caveat?

"You know, compared to the others, you're a bit weird," Kakashi remarked as he stared at the thoughtful Genin.

Naruto shook his head and took a leap of faith. "Okay. I talked to other people about this test." He glanced at the bells. "It's very difficult, but…" He shook his head. In for a penny… "There's something missing. Something you haven't told us," Naruto accused him.

Kakashi raised an eyebrow, and it looked like he was interested. "Oh?" He asked in mock curiousness. "Do tell."

Naruto folded his arms across his test. Another glance at the bells. "By mere happy accident someone, at some point, had to have a bell, if only for a few seconds," He remarked, giving air to his suspicions.

Kakashi shook his head. "Nope. You're overestimating all the cute Genin who've come before you," He remarked with an eye-smile. Said the man who'd wanted them starved and hungry for this test. That was something akin to confirmation that there was more to this test than met the eye. But what could it be?

"Right," Naruto remarked slowly. "I don't believe you. And…" He stared at him, realizing something. "I don't have any reason to!" But if he had no reason to believe his sensei about anything he'd said before, then… another glance at the innocent looking bells.

"_All you have to do is get these two bells from me."_

_"I thought I told you not to eat."_

_ "Good to see one of you is actually thinking."_

It was too… innocent. All the fortune he'd encountered to this point was from doing the opposite of what his sensei told him to do. So… two bells? Two chances to pass? No. If he couldn't trust the man, and he the authority to pass or fail any of them… Maybe… the bells were the pass! A team! Maybe they were supposed to sink or swim as a team! "Oh," He muttered in realization. Now that sounded like an impossible test; figuring out that something entirely different was expected, and still having the skills to meet those new expectations, without anyone saying so. Plus, a team, with a seemingly divisive objective pulling together to achieve it. Yep. Impossible.

"You leave me no choice," Kakashi remarked, as he reached into his pouch once more and pulled out… that Orange book. Icha Icha. It would have been infuriating if he'd actually planned to attack him right now. But-

"And you leave me no choice," Naruto remarked smugly before he turned and walked away. Even if he was completely wrong, even if he had read way too much into the test, was seeing things that weren't there, maybe, if they all pulled together, then two of them would have be able to pass. And if he wasn't one of them, he could contentedly head back to the Academy for another go around. There were much worse fates than having another two years to try and become a better ninja. Besides, this wasn't the time to show Kakashi what he had. He'd have another chance. He concentrated on sending out a pulse of chakra. One of his teammates was close by. He casually walked for a few minutes before he discovered Sasuke perched in a tree.

"What are you doing dobe?" He hissed angrily. The dobe had been outclassing him all day, and then he'd just engaged in a war of words with Kakashi. What the hell was the moron playing at?

"Listen Sasuke, don't you think there's something funny with this test?" He asked calmly.

No. Not this time. Not again. "No, I don't," he remarked shortly. "Why the hell did you waste our time bantering with our sensei?" He hissed angrily.

"To confirm something. Because I do think there's something funny with this test. And I'm pretty sure I now know what it is," His teammate told him.

Sasuke shook his head, "No. No! Whatever it is, I'm not going along with it. You're wasting time, dobe. My time," He snarled as he leapt to another tree to move away from his annoying teammate.

Naruto shook his head and decided to try his luck with Sakura. Maybe she would be more receptive. "KYYAA!" Naruto sighed as annoyance overrode concern. He doubted their sensei would do anything truly harmful, but it looked like Sakura had just met defeat of some kind. He perked up slightly- maybe she'd be more willing to work with him?

Five minutes later, he was standing next to her twitching body as she foamed at the mouth. Naruto grabbed her arms and started trying to shake her awake. It looked like… she fallen victim to a Genjutsu? Kind of. Hell if he knew. "Sakura. Sakura. Sakura!" That seemed to do the trick as she gave a groan and jolted awake. "Nice to see you're all right," He muttered.

"Sasuke-kun!" She looked around frantically. "Sasuke-kun!" She stood up and knocked Naruto off balance. "Don't worry, Sasuke-kun! I'm coming to save you!" She shrieked as she ran out of the clearing. Naruto shook his head disappointedly. 0 for 2.

He returned to the main clearing where he saw Sakura freaking out over Sasuke, who was buried up to his neck in dirt. Well he'd apparently tried and failed, so maybe now he'd be more receptive. And if he convinced Sasuke, Sakura was sure to join in. "Kage Bunshin!" They both turned curiously as a few clones materialized and began trying to dig him up. Sakura and her frantic worry about her crush was definitely not helping. "Look." They both grudgingly turned towards him. "We need to try something different. I'm definitely not good enough to get a bell on my own from a ninja like him, and to be honest, neither are the two of you." Sasuke scoffed. "But if we work together-"

"No," Sasuke growled immediate as Naruto's clones finally dug him free. "Not happening, dobe," He growled as he got up and stomped off to face Kakashi again. Sakura looked between them before scrambling off to follow Sasuke. 0 for 3, Naruto thought sadly. Well, it looked like there was nothing left but to try facing the man on his own. He was about to leave, when he accidently glanced at the whole Sasuke had been trapped in. _Traps. Pranks._

* * *

"Out of curiosity, have you ever purposefully made the wrong move simply because it's all you can do?' Naruto asked as he entered the clearing. The Earth pulse couldn't detect Sasuke or Sakura close by. Maybe they'd join in half-way through. Hopefully. Kami wlling. Really the only way this could work.

Kakashi looked up curiously. "Not really. Why?"

Naruto sighed. "All of my instincts tell me that facing you is the wrong move. I need my teammates. But to rally my teammates, I need a bell, and to get a bell, I need to rally my teammates so… Catch-22." He shrugged his shoulders before charging towards his sensei with a kunai grasped firmly in his hand.

Kakashi neatly sidestepped him and grabbed his extended arm, before slamming him to the ground. 'Naruto' promptly disappeared in a puff of smoke. "Wha-?" Kakashi moved just in time to block a strike from another Naruto who'd leapt once the first had been dispelled. His eyes widened slightly. Solid. Shadow Clones. Right, he was supposed to know that. He quickly blocked the clone's subsequent strikes before he dispelled it too with a vicious punch to the mouth.

As the smoke dissipated, he was suddenly forced to dodge a fireball as the last Uchiha entered the fray. Another quick dodge as Sakura leapt from behind him. Hmm, they were all fighting him as something resembling a team. Or at least something that now required his attention. He looked up, and Naruto stood in front of him, before making the cross sign and creating a dozen clones. Sakura and Sasuke were momentarily stunned as a dozen new allies entered the battle. Kakashi shook his head and decided things had gotten a little too hectic. Before the clones reached him, he quickly Kawarimi'd, and headed for the original apparent- he didn't feel like getting swarmed by clones again. But… Naruto smirked as his strike hit him head on. Why would he-

The second the clone had disappeared, explosions rocked him from all sides, knocking him off balance. Sakura, Sasuke, and the Naruto army weren't willing to let the opportunity go to waste, as they leapt at him, trying for a bell, before-

DING! The alarm clock signaled the end of the test. Kakashi scrambled to his feet, the bells dangling safely out of reach from their last, desperate attack. Because Kakashi knew none of them could see it, he smirked. Now that was much better than any team before them. They still failed, but it definitely merited a second chance. Though he probably would have given this potential team one no matter what happened. But for now…

* * *

Kakashi stared at the Genin, with Sakura tied to the post and Naruto and Sasuke flanking her on either side. "Well, there's no need for you guys to head back to the Academy," Pause. Let them get there hopes up. Then… "Yes, you three should just quit as ninjas."

Hopes were dashed instantly. Three shocked and glum Genin stood before him. Shock quickly turned to anger as Sasuke charged him. Kakashi evaded his strike and slammed him to the ground. "Well, what else should I think when you never understood the meaning of this test?"

"Hey! I think I get it!" Naruto shouted angrily. "You wanted us to work as a team and retrieve those stupid bells." He glared at Sasuke and Sakura. "I tried to tell you two that but neither of you would listen!"

"Actually… he is correct," Kakashi announced dramatically. He shook his head. "When you all attacked me at once, you were actually close to snagging a bell." He shook his head. "If only you three had actually worked together, you might have gotten the bells."

"But even if we still got the bells, one of us would have failed!" Sakura challenged him from the post she was tied to. "There were only two bells!"

Kakashi shrugged. "This test is set up to steer you towards fighting amongst yourselves. The purpose is to see if you can forget about your own interests, and worked together fully to achieve the objective." He pointed at Sakura. "You were only thinking about Sasuke, and whether he was okay." He pointed at Sasuke, who he was still sitting on. "He was only thinking about himself and thinking that everyone else would just get in the way." He pointed at Naruto. "… Actually, blondie had the right idea. He spent his time trying to work with both of you, and when that didn't work, he left you an opening to attack and distract me. So maybe one of you shouldn't drop out of the program," He said, almost as an afterthought. He shook his head. "Even though individual ability is very important, what's more important is teamwork. Your own actions can put the team in danger and," He hesitated slightly, "Even get you killed. For example…" He quickly pulled out a kunai, "Naruto! Kill Sakura! Or Sasuke dies!"

Naruto blinked and quickly flashed through hand seals, before Sasuke took his spot, and he replaced Sasuke. Kakashi blinked and looked down at the Genin who'd just substituted himself under him. Wow, that looked uncomfortable.

"You see? If a hostage is taken, you have tough choices to make," He glanced down at Naruto. "Choices that could lead to your deaths. Make no mistake; you will be risking your lives in the line of duty." He glanced at the blonde again. "You better hope that you're as willing to make difficult decisions as blondie here. Because those who abandon the mission are trash, but those who abandon their comrades are worse than trash," He growled in warning. Another glance. 'And I wish I could have been like you when Rin was captured.' He thought sadly.

"See that stone there? All the names carved in it? Those are ninjas recognized as heroes of the village." Pause for dramatic effect. "Heroes who died in the line of duty. My best friend's name is also carved here." An uncomfortable silence ensued. "Because blondie seems to have the right idea, I'll give you another chance. But after lunch. And I'll make it even tougher to get the bells," He warned. "If you still want to challenge me, you can eat lunch. But don't give any to Sakura. Anyone gives her food, and they will fail. Got it?" Two nods. "Right, I'll be back soon. Remember…" He glanced at Sakura.

Naruto and Sasuke hesitantly took the bento boxes as their sensei walked away. Naruto gave it a look. He had lunch with Hinata to look forward too. And he didn't really need the food. And he'd gotten pretty far today by doing the exact opposite of whatever their sensei had said. "Here Sakura. Enjoy," Naruto said, handing over his lunch.

"What? But Naruto, Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura squeaked nervously.

"Hungry ninja aren't effective ninja. And I have another lunch to look forward to," Naruto said calmly. Though how he was going to make it there on time was beyond him. "Go on, take it."

Sasuke glanced at his own lunch as he ate a few bites. Once he had a small amount he turned to her. "Dobe's right. We're not going to pass this test without you. Here," He offered his own as well.

"WHAT?" Kakashi stormed through the brush, an intense thunderstorm seemingly surrounding him. "YOU GUYS…!" Three trembling Genin waited for the axe to drop. "Pass," He finished calmly.

"Pass!" Three voices asked in unison. Naruto could hardly believe it. Had that actually worked? Could they really have-

"Yup. Everyone else just did whatever I told them. They were just morons," He shook his head disparagingly. "You guys are the first. Because a ninja must see underneath the underneath. And like I said: those who break the rules of the ninja world are trash, but those who don't take care of their comrades are worse than trash." He paused and cleared his throat. "Anyway, Team Seven will begin its normal duties tomorrow. That ends the training exercise," he said walking away.

Sasuke began walking away as well, but Naruto grabbed a kunai and freed Sakura. Perhaps it was just something for old time's sake. "Later, Sakura," He said, walking away. It must be close to one. And he had a date. And… oh yeah, he was actually, really a Genin! Dattebayo! Oh, and he had a friggin' date to get too! With that, he began sprinting for Icharaku's; he was nearly late!

AN The 2nd: Yes, I know Naru/Hina is overdone. I'd like to reiterate; I'm not sold on it as the main pairing, so it may not stick. But I think it's something very important for character development, and I really wish Kishimoto had arranged something like this just so his protagonist could become a little more mature. To reiterate, this may not stay. Or it may, in which case I have alienated many among you. I don't know. All I know is that there will be a chapter three sometime in the future, and stuff will happen, and some amongst the peanut gallery will invariably be displeased with the direction of this story. At least I'm pretty sure this isn't going to me a mistake on the caliber of the later chapters of _Harry Potter: An Education_. Bad times; bad mistakes. I was so young and naive back then. I'm so much different now. I think. Maybe. Either way, later!


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